Mailing Address: 
ZCXDLCX3Y DEPARTMENT 
MORRILL SCIENCE CENTB^ 
June 18, 1982 
Dr. William Gartland, Jr. 
Director 
Office of Recombinant DNA Activities 
Building 31, Room 4A52 
National Institutes of Health 
Bethesda, Maryland 20205 
Dear Dr. Gartland, 
This letter is in support of the anmendment to the NIH Recombinant 
DNA Guidelines that had been proposed by Drs. Richard Goldstein and 
Richard Novlck: "l-D-7. The construction of biological weapons by 
molecular cloning". 
It seems highly unlikely that viable pathogens or other noxious 
organisms will be accidently produced by recombinant DNA cloning 
procedures. On the other hand, if individuals specifically desired 
to alter the antigenic or antibiotic resistance properties of existing 
pathogens, confer pathogenic properties on benign organisms or to 
synthesize toxins, in vitro recombinant DNA procedures could be 
employed and, I expect, would be successful. If these applications 
of molecular cloning were directed at humans, domestic animals, crop 
plants or natural foliage, and wildlife, i.e. for the development 
of weapons for biological warfare, then they would be absolutely 
inconslstant with the intent and spirit of the NIH Recombinant DNA 
Guidelines . 
Although there is an international treaty prohibiting the 
development of biological weapons, and there are statements in the 
existing Recombinant DNA Guidelines prohibiting some of the above 
described applications of molecular cloning, it is my feeling that a 
specific biological warfare ammendment remains warranted. There may 
well be biological weapons applications not covered by existing 
sanctions, and this issue is sufficiently grave that it should be 
raised in as many forums as possible. 
In making the biological weapons ammendment to the NIH Guidelines, 
it should be clear that this sanction is not directed against the 
use of molecular cloning for the development of vacclneSj antitoxins 
or therapeutic agents by the military or for the construction of 
organisms for the biological control of disease vectors or agricultural pests. 
[ 801 ] 
