WHO announces proposed members of its Technical Advisory Group on Responsible use of the life sciences and dual-use research (TAG-RULS DUR)

After careful consideration of all applications submitted to WHO, the following individuals are proposed for membership of the WHO Technical Advisory Group on Responsible use of the life sciences and dual-use research (TAG-RULS DUR).

Following a public call for experts, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced today the proposed members of the WHO Technical Advisory Group on Responsible use of the life sciences and dual-use research (TAG-RULS DUR).

The TAG-RULS DUR will provide independent advice to WHO including technical and strategic advice on relevant to the monitoring and mitigation of biorisks, advances in the life sciences and related technologies, the governance of dual-use research and the responsible use of the life sciences.

The 19 proposed TAG-RULS DUR members have expertise in a range of areas including, but not limited to, the following:

• oversight of dual-use research and dual-use of concern (DURC), knowledge, information, methods, products or technologies;
• biorisk mitigation and management, biosafety and biosecurity;
• emerging areas of research and technologies in biology and the life sciences (for example, but not limited to, synthetic biology, genome editing, virology, infectious diseases, bioinformatics, neurosciences) and associated disciplines (for example, but not limited to, chemistry, artificial intelligence, nanotechnologies);
• governance of emerging technologies;
• risk communication and disinformation;
• ethics, international law, policy and governance and other relevant social science domains, related to the responsible use of the life sciences, dual-use research and pandemic prevention, preparedness and response;
• foresight;
• monitoring and evaluation related to global health security; and
• One Health approach to the responsible use of the life sciences and dual-use research.

In the selection of the TAG members, consideration was given to attaining an adequate distribution of technical expertise, geographical representation and gender balance.

As per WHO processes, there will be now a two-week public consultation period for WHO to receive feedback on the proposed TAG-RULS DUR members and set in place the modalities for the TAG-RULS DUR’s first meeting, which is planned to take place following this consultation period.

The final membership to the TAG-RULS DUR is subject to the above-mentioned public consultation period and relevant WHO practices and procedures.

Functions of the TAG-RULS DUR

In its capacity as an advisory body to WHO, the TAG-RULS DUR shall have the following functions:

1. to provide, review and make recommendations to WHO on the scientific, technical and strategic aspects relevant to the monitoring and mitigation of biorisks and advances in the life sciences and related technologies, the governance of dual-use research and the responsible use of the life sciences;
2. to identify gaps, challenges, strengths and opportunities and recommend priorities to WHO and the relevant technical unit – Emerging Technologies, Research Prioritisation and Support (EPS) – on the scientific, technical and strategic aspects relevant to the anticipation, prevention and mitigation of biorisks, the governance of dual-use research and the responsible use of the life sciences;
3. to advise on the work and activities of the WHO project of Ensuring the responsible use of the life sciences: mitigating biorisks and governing dual-use research, part of the EPS unit; and
4. upon request by WHO, to advise WHO on a reporting mechanism relevant to the mitigation of biorisks, the governance of dual-use research and the responsible use of the life sciences.

WHO will be finalizing the appointment of the 19 members in the coming days following the review of comments received during their notice period.

The members are to serve in their personal capacities to represent the broad range of disciplines relevant to the responsible use of the life sciences and the governance of dual-use research. In evaluating the applications submitted, consideration was given to attaining an adequate distribution of technical expertise, geographical representation and gender balance.

Proposed TAG-RULS DUR members

1. Professor (Dr) Ali Asy is Professor and Biosafety Advisor at Animal Health Research Institute, Egypt. He is an adjunct professor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), USA and a member of the International Panel of Experts of the Global Health Security Index (GHS Index). He is from Egypt.
2. Professor (Dr) Lela Bakanidze is Key Expert for On-Site Technical Assistance (OSA) to the EU Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) Centers of Excellence Initiative Regional Secretariat for Central Asia, in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. She is from Georgia.
3. Professor (Dr) Halima Benbouza is Director at the National Council of Scientific Research and Technologies, Algeria. She participates in several outreach and educational activities related to Biosafety, Biosecurity, and Responsible Conduct of Science in the MENA region. She is from Algeria and Belgium.
4. Dr Diederik A. Bleijs leads the Biosecurity Office at the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) in Netherlands (Kingdom of the). He is from Netherlands (Kingdom of the).
5. Professor (Dr) Stuart Blacksell is Senior Principal Research Scientist at the University of Oxford based at the Mahidol-Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit (MORU) in Thailand. He is a Professor of Tropical Microbiology at the University of Oxford, a Visiting Professor at the Open University UK and Mahidol University, Thailand, and an Honorary Associate Professor at the University of Sydney in Australia. He is from Australia.
6. Ms. Anita Cicero is Deputy Director at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security and a Senior Scientist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America. She is from the United States of America.
7. Dr Maria Jose Espona leads several projects including CBRN Export Control on Dual-Use Materials and Intangible Technologies in Central Asia (ISTC) and in GUAM Countries (STCU). She also participates as SME in several Health Security Partners, Coalescion and CRDF Global projects on biorisk management and export control, among other topics, in Latin America and other regions. She is from Argentina.
8. Dr Ken-Ichi Hanaki is Director of the Safety Management Department, which consists of the Section of Biorisk Management and the Section of Laboratory Animal Management, at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan. He is from Japan.
9. Dr Diah Iskandriati is Senior Research Scientist, Biorisk Management Advisor, Chairperson of the Institutional Biorisk Committee at the Primate Research Center, and a Lecturer at the Primatology Graduate Program of Bogor Agricultural University (IPB University), Bogor, Indonesia. She is from Indonesia.
10. Dr Bratati Kar is the Manager of Biotechnology, Innovation, and Novel Sciences section of the Science, Reporting and Assessment Directorate, Science and Technology Branch at Government of Canada. She is an experienced scientist focused on supporting cutting-edge scientific research, development, and implementation of safe and sustainable products for the benefit of environment and human health. Dr. Kar is also the Director and Board Member of the International Centre for the Advancement of Health Regional Innovation and Science™. She is from Canada.
11. Dr Filippa Lentzos is Reader (Associate Professor) in Science and International Security at King’s College London, where she is jointly appointed in the Department of War Studies and the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine. She is from Norway.
12. Professor (Dr) Marc Lipsitch is Professor of Epidemiology at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, United States of America, where he directs the Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics and the Interdisciplinary Concentration in Infectious Disease. He is from the United States of America.
13. Dr Syra Madad is Senior Director of the System-wide Special Pathogens Program at NYC Health + Hospitals, and fellow at The Defense, Emerging Technology, and Strategy (DETS) Program at Harvard University’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. She is Core Faculty at the National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center (NETEC), and affiliate faculty at the Center for Emerging Infectious Disease Policy & Research at Boston University. She is from Pakistan and United States of America.
14. Dr Donald Ibe Ofili is Director and Deputy Registrar, MLSCN Accreditation Service, Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria. He is the Chair of the West Africa Regional Technical Working Group on Biosafety and Biosecurity. He is from Nigeria.
15. Dr Maxwell Otim Onapa is a Biomedical Researcher and a Distinguished Fellow of the Uganda National Academy of Sciences (FUNAS). He is a commissioner in the government of Uganda and a visiting professor at the department of public health, Busitema, a public university in Uganda. He is from Uganda.
16. Dr Dana Perkins is Senior Science Advisor with the Administration for Preparedness and Response, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and she co-chairs the International Working Group on Strengthening the Culture of Biosafety, Biosecurity, and Responsible Conduct of Science. She is from the United States of America.
17. Professor (Dr) Zabta Khan Shinwari is Distinguish Nat. Prof./Prof. Emeritus, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad. He is a former Vice Chairman of the UNESCO-World Commission for Ethics of Scientific knowledge and Technology (COMEST); Vice President of the Islamic World Academy of Sciences (IAS), Fellow of Pakistan Academy of Sciences and The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS). He is from Pakistan.
18. Dr David Ulaeto is Principal Scientist at the Department of Biomedical Sciences, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), Salisbury, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. He is from the United Kingdom.
19. Dr Leifan Wang is an Associate Professor of international law at Tianjin University School of Law and Center for Biosafety Research & Strategy. She is from China.
    

Pursuant to WHO’s rules and practices, and in order to enhance WHO’s management of conflicts of interest, as well as strengthen public trust and transparency in connection with WHO advisory groups involving the provision of technical advice, the names and brief biographies of the individuals selected for TAG-RULS DUR membership are now disclosed for public notice and comment.

Should you wish to comment on the individuals, please send your comments to responsiblesciences@who.int with subject, “Public comments on TAG-RULS DUR members,” by 22 December 2023, 18:00 CET.

Disclaimer:

In order to enhance its management of Conflicts of Interest as well as strengthen public trust and transparency in connection with WHO meetings involving the provision of technical/normative advice, the names and brief biographies of individuals (“Published Information”) being considered for participation in such meetings are disclosed for public notice and comment.

The Published Information is provided by the experts themselves and is the sole responsibility of the individuals concerned. WHO is not responsible for the accuracy, veracity and completeness of the Published Information provided.  Furthermore, in no event will WHO be responsible or liable for damages in relation to the use of, and reliance upon, the Published Information.

The comments received by WHO through the public notice and comment process are treated confidentially and their receipt will be acknowledged through a generic email notification to the sender. Comments and perceptions brought to the knowledge of WHO through this process are an integral component of WHO’s conflict of interest assessment policy and are carefully reviewed. WHO reserves the right to discuss information received through this process with the relevant expert with no attribution to the provider of such information. Upon review and assessment of the information received through this process, WHO, in its sole discretion, may take appropriate management action in accordance with its policies. 

The participation of an expert in a WHO meeting does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by the World Health Organization nor does it create a binding relationship between the expert and WHO. 

The list of participating experts, a summary of relevant interests disclosed by such experts, and any appropriate mitigation measures taken by WHO relating to the management of conflicts of interests, will be reported publicly in accordance with WHO practice.