A Description of COGENE 
The parent body of the Committee on Genetic Experimentation 
(COGENE) is the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU), an 
international non-governmental scientific organization of 18 
autonomous international Scientific Unions and more than 60 National 
Members, i.e. academies of science, research councils or similar 
scientific institutions. 
COGENE was created by decision of the 16th General Assembly of 
ICSU and came into being in 1977. It is a Scientific Committee, one of a 
type formed by ICSU whenever a task is defined that is of major interest 
to several unions and the program is of a long-term nature. COGENE is 
supported, by seven member unions — Pure and Applied Chemistry, 
Biological Sciences, Biochemistry, Pure and Applied Biophysics, 
Nutritional Sciences, Pharmacology and the Immunological Societies 
— and includes a number of scientists prominent in the field of 
recombinant DNA research, which is currently the major focus of in- 
terest of COGENE and the reason why the Committee came into being. 
Membership 
A.A. Bayev (U.S.S.R.) 
G. Bemardi (France) 
S.N. Cohen (U.S.A.) 
A.F. Langlykke (U.S.A.) 
K. Murray (U.K.) 
N. Notani (India) 
R. Riley (U.K.) 
A.M.Skalka (U.S.A.) 
C. Steinberg (Switzerland) 
J. Tooze, Secretary (BRD) 
I. Watanabe (Japan) 
W.J. Whelan, Chairman (U.S.A.) 
E. Wollman (France) 
Observers have been appointed by FAO, ICRO, UNEP, UNESCO and 
WHO. Twenty-one nations have appointed National Correspondents. 
Purposes and Objectives 
The terms of reference of COGENE include the following purposes 
and objectives: 
COGENE is a Scientific Committee of ICSU, established to serve as a 
nongovernmental, interdisciplinary and international council of 
scientists and as a source of advice for the benefit of governments, 
inter-governmental agencies, scientific groups, and individuals, con- 
cerning recombinant DNA activities. 
Among its purposes shall be: 
a) to review, elvaluate and make available information on the 
practical and scientific benefits, safeguards, containment 
facilities and other technical matters, 
b) to consider environmental, health-related and other con- 
sequences of any disposal of biological agents constructed 
by recombinant DNA techniques, 
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