Nuclear agency head warns of radiological and chemical contamination inside Iran's main nuclear site
VIENNA (AP) — The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said Monday that there is a possibility of both radiological and chemical contamination within Iran's main nuclear enrichment facility in Natanz following Israeli strikes, although radiation levels outside the complex are presently normal.
IAEA director general Rafael Mariano Grossi said that the radiation poses a significant danger if uranium is inhaled or ingested. He added that the risk can be effectively managed with appropriate protective measures, such as using respiratory protection devices while inside the facilities.
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Toronto Star
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- Toronto Star
Second patient death reported with gene therapy for muscular dystrophy
WASHINGTON (AP) — Shares of Sarepta Therapeutics plunged Monday after the biotech drugmaker reported a second death in connection with its gene therapy for muscular dystrophy. Sarepta reported the death over the weekend and provided additional details about its response, which includes pausing shipments of the therapy, Elevidys, for older patients who are no longer able to walk. The one-time treatment is approved for children with a genetic variant of Duchenne's muscular dystrophy, which causes weakness, loss of mobility and early death in males.
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Dismissed members of CDC vaccine committee call Kennedy's actions ‘destabilizing'
NEW YORK (AP) — All 17 experts recently dismissed from a government vaccine advisory panel published an essay Monday decrying 'destabilizing decisions' made by U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. that could lead to more preventable disease spread. Kennedy last week announced he would 'retire' the entire panel that guides U.S. vaccine policy. He also quietly removed Dr. Melinda Wharton — the veteran Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official who coordinated the committee's meetings. Two days later, he named eight new people to the influential panel. The list included a scientist who criticized COVID-19 vaccines, a leading critic of pandemic-era lockdowns and someone who worked with a group widely considered to be a leading source of vaccine misinformation. 'We are deeply concerned that these destabilizing decisions, made without clear rationale, may roll back the achievements of U.S. immunization policy, impact people's access to lifesaving vaccines, and ultimately put U.S. families at risk of dangerous and preventable illnesses,' the 17 panelists wrote in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The new committee is scheduled to meet next week. The agenda for that meeting has not yet been posted, but a recent federal notice said votes are expected on vaccinations against flu, COVID-19, HPV, RSV and meningococcal bacteria. The removal of Wharton and CDC immunization staff cuts will make it hard for a group of new outside advisers to quickly come up to speed and make fact-based decisions about what vaccines to recommend and not recommend to the public, the experts said. 'The termination of all members and its leadership in a single action undermines the committee's capacity to operate effectively and efficiently, aside from raising questions about competence,' they wrote. A spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services did not respond to the JAMA commentary, but instead pointed to Kennedy's previous comments on the committee. Kennedy, a leading voice in the anti-vaccine movement before becoming the U.S. government's top health official, has accused the committee of being too closely aligned with vaccine manufacturers and of rubber-stamping vaccines. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, created in 1964, makes recommendations to the CDC director on how vaccines that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration should be used. CDC directors almost always approve those recommendations, which are widely heeded by doctors and guide vaccination programs. ACIP policies require members to state past collaborations with vaccine companies and to recuse themselves from votes in which they had a conflict of interest, but Kennedy has dismissed those safeguards as weak. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Second patient death reported with gene therapy for muscular dystrophy
WASHINGTON (AP) — Shares of Sarepta Therapeutics plunged Monday after the biotech drugmaker reported a second death in connection with its gene therapy for muscular dystrophy. Sarepta reported the death over the weekend and provided additional details about its response, which includes pausing shipments of the therapy, Elevidys, for older patients who are no longer able to walk. The one-time treatment is approved for children with a genetic variant of Duchenne's muscular dystrophy, which causes weakness, loss of mobility and early death in males. Elevidys is the first gene therapy approved in the U.S. for the rare muscle-wasting condition, but it has faced scrutiny since its accelerated approval in 2023. The second death, like an earlier one reported in March, occurred in a teenage boy who suffered a fatal case of acute liver injury, a known side effect of the therapy. Older patients receive a larger dose of the therapy. Sarepta said it would pause a study in those patients and assemble an expert panel to recommend new safety protocols for taking the drug. Those changes are expected to include increased use of immune-system suppressing drugs, company executives said Monday. The liver injury associated with the therapy is thought to be connected to the immune system's response. Sarepta said it was cooperating with the Food and Drug Administration, which would have to sign off on any changes to the product's use. Elevidys received expedited approval despite concerns from some FDA scientists about its effectiveness in treating Duchenne's. The FDA granted full approval last year and expanded the therapy's use to patients 4 years and older, regardless of whether they are still able to walk. Previously it was only available for younger patients who were still walking. Shares of the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company fell more than 42% to close at about $21 in trading. Wednesdays Columnist Jen Zoratti looks at what's next in arts, life and pop culture. Wall Street analysts speculated that FDA officials, including new vaccine chief Dr. Vinay Prasad, might impose more restrictions on the drug or even block its use. Prasad has been highly critical of the therapy since its approval under the agency's previous leadership. 'Now with two deaths reported in this segment of the market, it seems incrementally more possible that the FDA could step in and remove the therapy from the market in non-ambulatory patients,' said Leerink Partners analyst Joseph Schwartz, in a Sunday research note. Elevidys uses a disabled virus to insert a replacement gene for producing dystrophin into patient cells. It costs $3.2 million for a one-time infusion. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
