Abstract
In the past decade, the United States (U.S.) has enacted extensive federal legislation to regulate the possession, use, and transfer of dangerous microorganisms and toxins. Yet, few international laboratories have implemented similar safeguards. Limited data are available concerning the types of biological agents researched in non-U.S. laboratories and the biosafety and biosecurity practices employed to maintain those agents. To start addressing these knowledge gaps, an online survey was administered by BioInformatics, LLC in 2005 to 765 life scientists from 81 countries in Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East. Survey results revealed that participants are actively engaged in research with a wide variety of biological agents. Moreover, analysis of the biosafety and biosecurity data revealed several interesting findings; these findings are summarized into three major themes: biosafety is more prevalent than biosecurity, simple practices and techniques predominate, and perceptions of risk vary regionally. This survey provided unique insight into the variety of dangerous microorganisms and their toxins studied worldwide and uncovered a consistent weakness in laboratory biosafety and biosecurity. Because many of these facilities are located in volatile areas of the world, these findings indicate a potentially significant risk, and future actions are warranted to improve the safe and secure handling of biological agents internationally.