3 
reported to me that there was substantial scientific consensus on this 
matter, not only among the molecular biologists in attendance but also 
among microbiologists who work with disease-producing bacteria. Proposed 
experiments involving insertion of recombinant DNA into organisms other 
than E. coli K-12 will also receive careful scrutiny before they are 
approved by NIH. 
Much of the concern expressed about recombinant DNA experiments 
relates to the creation of novel organisms in the laboratory. However, 
additional evidence to be published this month suggests that the 
recombinations of DNA produced in the laboratory may be very similar 
to those that occur in nature. If further work confirms and extends 
the evidence presented by Dr. Standley N. Cohen, a leading molecular 
biologist at Stanford University, then the concern about creating new 
forms of life will be put into a new perspective. 
Mr. Chairman, I would like to submit for the record some documents 
describing in greater detail the scientific matters I have reviewed today. 
Administrative Developments 
The NIH Guidelines provide not only explicit instructions about 
permissible experiments, but also an administrative framework for 
their implementation. They set out the respective responsibilities 
of the principal investigator, the institution where the work is 
conducted (including the institutional biohazards committee) , and 
the NIH initial review group (study section) which judges the 
scientific worthiness of. the proposal. They also detail the responsi- 
bilities of the NIH Recombinant DNA Molecule Program Advisory Committee 
(or simply "Recombinant Advisory Committee," the technical body 
responsible for proposing the Guidelines), and the NIH staff. 
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