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GCRI · Biotechnologie et biosécurité

Double usage et éthique

Much life sciences research is dual use: knowledge, materials and technologies developed for beneficial purposes could also be misused to cause harm. This topic, studied at Biotechnology and Biosecurity, a platform of The Global Centre for Risk and Innovation (GCRI), examines how research of concern is identified, how responsibility is shared between researchers, institutions, funders and publishers, and how concerns are escalated, alongside the wider ethical questions biotechnology raises.

02Questions essentielles

Ce que se demandent les experts.

  • How can research of concern be identified early, without discouraging beneficial science?
  • What responsibilities do researchers, institutions, funders and publishers each hold?
  • How should concerns be raised and escalated, and how are those who raise them protected?
  • How should the publication of sensitive findings be handled?
  • How do ethical questions of consent, equity and benefit sharing apply to biotechnology?
03Suivi

Registre de supervision et des capacités.

L'écran qu'une équipe utiliserait pour suivre ce sujet : ses mesures, ses états et ses décisions. Les noms sont des exemples et les valeurs sont illustratives.

Registre de la supervision et des capacités

Dual use and ethics · National committee · Review year 2

  • Institutions dotées d'un comité, %
    61Surveillance
  • Personnel formé, %
    64Normal
  • Examens terminés
    55cette année
  • Rapports d'incident déposés
    13Info
Capacité et supervision uniquementGCRI · Biotechnologie et biosécurité

Supervision institutionnelle

Institution AActifQ487Actuel
Campus de rechercheActifQ482Audit à venir
Site de biofabricationEn constitutionaucun46Soutien
Réseau de diagnosticActifQ381Actuel

Note de cadrage

Couvre
gouvernance, formation, capacité de revue
Exclut
méthodes techniques et agents
Autorité
organisme national de surveillance
Étiquette
SURVEY
Oversight and capacity register: the screen’s structure, terms and states for Dual use and ethics.Noms donnés à titre d'exemple et valeurs illustratives ; une conception, non un enregistrement ni un système en service.
04À travers les domaines

Dual-use governance applies wherever life-science research touches the domains.

Governance analyses are designed for the série Technologies exponentielles. The WHO framework (2022) and the Biological Weapons Convention set the frame; GCRI publishes governance analysis, never methods of concern.

  • Governance comparisons.
  • Ethics review lessons.
05Méthodes et preuves

How dual use and ethics is modelled, measured and tested.

Le modèle, ses hypothèses, ses données et son incertitude, sous la forme qu'un scientifique ou un ingénieur vérifierait. Les structures suivent des méthodes publiées. Les valeurs représentées sont illustratives, ce ne sont pas des résultats.

Bandes d'incertitude

How far the outlook for dual use and ethics could spread, shown as ranges rather than a single line.

Maintenant+5+10+15+20+25+30 yélevéfaiblefourchette très probablefourchette probable
Estimation centrale
médiane de l'ensemble
Plages
probable et très probable, dans le langage calibré du GIEC
Ensemble
membres, scénarios et conditions initiales énoncés
À lire avec
la sensibilité du résultat à chaque entrée
Dispersion illustrative d'un ensemble sur une échelle d'indice ; la forme suit les orientations du GIEC sur l'incertitude. Il ne s'agit pas d'une projection.
Principes directeurs FAIR · GO FAIR et FORCE11W3C PROV · World Wide Web ConsortiumOrientations sur le traitement cohérent des incertitudes · GIECCEOS Analysis Ready Data · Comité sur les satellites d'observation de la Terre
06Mécanismes

Facteurs et dynamiques.

Dual-use concerns arise because the same experiments that reveal how biological systèmes work can, in rare cases, produce knowledge or materials that could be misused. Policies in several countries define categories of research that require additional review, and funders and journals have developed processes for assessing sensitive work. These processes depend heavily on the judgement and awareness of researchers themselves.

Ethics in biotechnology extends beyond misuse: consent for the use of genetic data, equitable access to benefits, fair sharing of benefits from genetic resources, and respect for communities and ecosystems. A culture of responsibility, in which researchers consider consequences and feel able to raise concerns, is widely regarded as the foundation of effective governance. The platform works at the level of governance, evaluation and risk methods. It publishes no protocols, techniques or information that would increase anyone’s capacity to cause harm.

07Méthodes et limites

How it is studied.

  1. 01

    Policy analysis

    Comparative studies of dual-use review policies, funder conditions and publication practices.

  2. 02

    Ethics frameworks

    Structured approaches for weighing benefits, risks and responsibilities in research decisions.

  3. 03

    Education research

    Studies of how training and culture influence awareness and reporting.

  4. 04

    Limites

    Misuse potential is hard to judge in advance, review processes vary in rigour, and discussions of risk must avoid creating the hazards they seek to prevent.

08Décisions

What it informs and who decides.

This evidence informs institutional review processes, funder and publisher policies, training and national oversight frameworks. Researchers, institutional review committees, funders, publishers and regulators decide within their roles. Governance dialogue is convened by Gouvernance de la santé et de la biosécurité au Global Risks Forum (GRF). Concerns can be raised through corrections et préoccupations. Related topics are biosûreté et biosécurité des laboratoires, synthetic biology and biological threats; methods sit on molecular and life sciences.

Published analysis on this topic is designed to carry a named subject reviewer, its references and the views of independent specialists, including biosafety professionals and those who disagree.

09Sources

Where this page’s references lead.

Les organismes et documents à l'aune desquels cette page se lit. Les statuts et éditions changent ; chaque lien mène à l'organisme émetteur.

10Questions

Questions et réponses.

Does dual use mean research should stop?
No. Most research has great benefit. The aim is to identify the small share that needs additional care and to manage it responsibly.
Who is responsible for identifying research of concern?
Responsibility is shared: researchers first, then institutions, funders, publishers and regulators.
How can I raise a concern about research?
Through your institution’s procedures, or write to le formulaire de signalement d'intégrité. L'accusé de réception fournit une référence et indique l'étape suivante.
Qui examine la couverture de ce thème ?
Published analysis is designed to be reviewed by a named subject reviewer with relevant expertise, to cite its references and to include independent specialist voices. Where specialists disagree, the disagreement is reported rather than resolved by omission.
RapportsContribuer

Apportez des éléments de preuve depuis cette page.

Rapports is the Consortium’s quarterly publication. What you know about this subject can become evidence, a case or a correction in the next edition, credited to you and published under CC BY 4.0 where it is your own work.

GCRIBiotechnologie et biosécuritéTechnologies exponentiellesNote de synthèse sur les preuves
Biotechnologie et biosécurité

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