B. THE DEIS MINIMIZES THE RISKS OF RECOMBINANT RESEARCH 
The statement is couched in language which tends 
to minimize the risks and hazards of recombinant DNA research. 
A few examples follow: 
1. In the section on Possible Hazardous Situations 
the DEIS states that . . . "It should be emphasized that there 
is no known instance in which a hazardous agent has been 
created by recombinant DNA technology" (p. 18) . As a result 
of the moratorium agreed to at Asilomar, little recombinant 
DNA research has been done so it is not surprising that dangers 
have not yet been encountered. The claim, that we should rely 
upon past experience in evaluating the risk factors of this 
research is misleading and provides a false sense of security 
to the uninformed reader. 
2. In the description of recombinant experiments, 
the DEIS claims that the DNA vector is usually derived from 
the same species that will serve as host (p. 9). Again a 
sense of false security is created because the reader may 
assume that a host species will only receive DNA of its own 
kind. However, even a superficial reading of the NIH 
Guidelines shows that the Guidelines address themselves to the 
relegation of host-rector experiments of different organisms 
to various containment levels . 
- 11 - 
Appendix K — 91 
