2 
Dy public and private interest groups has been important 
in light of the special requirements for equipment, contain- 
ment, and training in carrying out sophisticated experiments. 
In June of 1977, the Public Affairs Committee of the Society 
appointed a Recombinant DNA Task Force to study the newly 
released NIH Guidelines and to make its recommendations 
concerning them. The six eminent microbiologists appointed 
to the Task Force were chosen on the basis of their broad 
expertise in areas of physical and biological containment, 
microbial genetics, virology, epidemiology, and industrial 
processes . 
Through this task force the Society has served the 
public and the scientific community as a collector and 
communicator of objective data on recombinant DNA research. 
It is similarly for the advancement of the public interest through 
the communication of objective data that the Society submits 
this brief. 
RECOMBINANT DNA RESEARCH IN ACCORDANCE 
WITH NIH GUIDELINES, AND THE PROPOSED 
EXPERIMENT AT FT. DETRICK SPECIFICALLY, 
PROVIDE IMPORTANT PUBLIC BENEFITS 
Prior to addressing the potential environmental impact 
and public health consequences of recombinant DNA research 
and the Ft. Detrick experiment, it is appropriate to discuss 
the public benefits of such research. Even a condensed 
review of such benefits sets recombinant DNA research in 
a rational, objective context. Present and potential 
benefits from recombinant DNA research are multifarious and 
s ignif icant . 
. Benefits of general recombinant DNA research include 
applied medical advances; medical and agricultural improve- 
ments; and accelerated understanding of the genetic and 
biochemical basis of disease processes. With respect to the 
Ft. Detrick test protocol, it is specifically designed to 
supply a first essential step toward honest risk assessment. 
[Appendix C — 144] 
