Bethesda North Marriott Hotel and Conference Center
5701 Marinelli Road
North Bethesda, MD  20852
301-822-9200

DRAFT AGENDA


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This conference will provide a forum to discuss real-world applications and proposed approaches to the methodological challenges in the search for improved methods to assess risk of exposure to biological agents after a deliberate, natural, or accidental contamination event. The overall objective is to provide enhanced tools and approaches to better identify the causative agent, assess degree of exposure and resultant health impacts, mitigate resultant consequences to the degree possible, and accomplish cost-effective cleanup and recovery.

Purpose of the Meeting:

  1. To facilitate collaboration and cooperation among scientists and policymakers from academia, private–sector organizations, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and other vested federal agencies, Department of Defense (DOD), states, local agencies, and stakeholders in efforts to advance the Microbial Risk Assessment (MRA) field of study.

  2. To provide an opportunity for consortium members of CAMRA (EPA/DHS Sponsored University-based Center for Advancing Microbial Risk Assessment) to present the results of their research.

  3. To assist EPA and DHS in identifying needed research, methods, or technologies important to addressing decisions and/or policy making issues associated with the assessment of the risk of exposure to biological contaminants of concern.

Tuesday, April 8, 2008
   
8:00 – 9:00 a.m. Registration and Poster Setup
   
Session I:  Context and Overview
   
9:00 – 9:10 a.m.

Welcome and Goals for the Conference
Irwin Baumel, EPA, Office of Research and Development (ORD), National Center for Environmental Research (NCER)
   
9:10 – 9:30 a.m. Overview of MRA Activities in the EPA’s Office of Research and Development
George Gray, Assistant Administrator, EPA, ORD
   
9:30 – 9:50 a.m.

Overview of DHS Science and Technology Directorate
Beth George, DHS

   
9:50 – 10:10 a.m.

Overview of MRA Activities in the EPA’s National Homeland Security Research Center
Jon Herrmann, Director, EPA, ORD, National Homeland Security Research Center (NHSRC)
   
10:10 – 10:30 a.m.

Weapon Potential of a Microbe      
Keynote Speaker:  Arturo Casadevall, Albert Einstein College of Medicine
   
10:30 – 11:00 a.m. Break
   

Session II:   Microbial Risk Assessment (MRA) Challenges

   
11:00 – 11:20 a.m.

Introduction and Overall Challenges to MRA
Tonya Nichols, EPA, ORD, NHSRC
   
11:20 – 11:40 a.m.

Interagency MRA Guidelines
Mike Broder, EPA, Risk Assessment Forum
   
11:40 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

DHS Centers Addressing Biological Threats
Elizabeth Filauri, DHS
   
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. Lunch (on your own)
   
Session III:  Mission-Directed Applications of MRA
   
1:00 – 1:20 p.m. MRA Activities Within the S&T Division
Beth George, DHS
   
1:20 – 1:40 p.m. MRA Activities and Application Within the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)
Janell Kause, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)
   
1:40 – 2:00 p.m. MRA Activities Within the FDA
Sherri Dennis, Food and Drug Administration (FDA)                                                
   
2:00 – 2:20 p.m. MRA Activities Within Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Rebecca Noe, CDC
   
2:20 – 2:40 p.m.

MRA and Development of Cleanup Goals
Deborah McKean, EPA, ORD, NHSRC
   
2:40 – 3:20 p.m. Break
   
3:20 – 3:40 p.m.

Office of Water (OW) Research to Advance MRA Capabilities to Assess Risk of Exposure to Waterborne Pathogens
Steve Schaub, EPA, Office of Water (OW)
   
3:40 – 4:00 p.m.

MRA Activities for the Development of Drinking Water Standards
Nick Ashbolt, EPA, ORD, National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL)
   
4:00 – 4:15 p.m.

Center for Advancing Microbial Risk Assessment (CAMRA) Overview and Introduction to Poster and Technical Sessions
Chuck Haas, CAMRA
   
4:15 – 6:00 p.m.

Poster Presentations
Posters will be available all 3 days!
   

Wednesday, April 9, 2008
   

Technical Program – Data Needs and Research in MRA
   

Session I:  Biological Hazard ID

   
8:30 – 8:50 a.m.

Challenges in Biological Hazard ID
Alan Lindquist, EPA, ORD, NHSRC
   
8:50 – 9:10 a.m.

Evaluation of Quantum Dots as Surrogates for Pathogens
Syed Hashsham, CAMRA
   
9:10 – 9:30 a.m.

Standardization of LRN Assays for Biothreat Agent ID 
Stephen Morse, CDC
   
9:30 – 9:50 a.m.

Bioforensic Analysis:  Obtaining a Biological Fingerprint
Sonia Hunt, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
   
9:50 – 10:20 a.m. Break
   

Session II:  Challenges in Exposure Assessment
   
10:20 – 10:40 a.m.

How Sampling Methods Influence Overall Exposure Assessment
Dino Mattorano, EPA, National Dredging Team (NDT)
   
10:40 – 11:00 a.m.

Factors Affecting the Persistence of Pathogens on Fomites
Ryan Sinclair, CAMRA
   
11:00 – 11:20 a.m.

An Emerging Science of Environmental Infection Transmission System
Jim Koopman, CAMRA
   
11:20 – 11:40  a.m. New Approaches to Microbial Exposure Assessment
Al, Dufour, EPA, NERL
   
11:40 – 12:00  p.m. Background Studies Underscore the Challenge of Designing Assays to Support Biosurveillance
Norman Doggett, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL)
   
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Lunch (on your own)
   
1:00 – 1:20 p.m.

Improvement of Water Quality Modeling for MRA
Chris Choi, CAMRA
   
1:20 – 1:40 p.m.

TEVA Modeling for Water Distribution Systems
Regan Murray, EPA, ORD, NHSRC
   

Session III:  Bridging the Gaps in Dose Response
   
1:40 – 2:00 p.m.

Challenges in Dose-Response Assessments
Jeff Swartout, EPA, ORD, NCEA
   
2:00 – 2:20 p.m. New Dose-Response Models for Key Class A Agents
Chuck Hass, CAMRA
   
2:20 – 2:40 p.m. Effect of Ongoing Exposure Dynamics in Dose-Response Relationships
Joe Eisenberg, CAMRA
   
2:40 – 3:20 p.m. Break
   
3:20 – 3:40 p.m. PB/BK Modeling of Low-Dose Infectivity for Inhalational Anthrax
Brad Gutting, Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC), Dahlgren
   
3:40 – 4:00 p.m. Old Data Provides New Dose-Response Curves for Anthrax
Brandolyn Thran, United States Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine (USACHPPM)
   
4:00 – 4:20 p.m. Listeria Dose-Response Assessment
Heejeong Latimer, USDA, FSIS
   

Thursday, April 10, 2008
   

Continuation of the Technical Program
   

Session IV:   Risk Characterization
   
8:30 – 9:00 a.m.

Decision Making Under Uncertainty
George Gray, Assistant Administrator, EPA, ORD
   
9:00 – 9:20 a.m.

Probabilistic Modeling for Biothreat Assessments
Steve Bennett, DHS
   
9:20 – 9:40 a.m.

Risk Characterization and Applications
Carl Schroeder, USDA, FSIS
   
9:40 – 10:00 a.m.

Risk Estimates for Tuberculosis
Tim Bartrand, CAMRA
   
10:00 – 10:30 a.m. Break
   

Session V:   Risk Perception and Risk Communication
   
10:30 – 10:50 a.m.

Challenges in Risk Communication
Rebecca Parkin, George Washington University
   
10:50 – 11:10 a.m.

Risk Communication Planning for the Aftermath of a Plague Bioattack         
Lis Casman, CAMRA
   

Session VI:   Panel on Future Direction
   
11:10 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Discussion of Conference and Way Forward
Stephen Morse, CDC
Chuck Haas, CAMRA
Alan Lindquist, EPA
Steve Schaub EPA
Steve Bennett, DHS
Carl Schroeder, USDA
   
12:00 – 12:15 p.m.

Closing Remarks
Irwin Baumel, EPA, ORD, NCER
   
12:15 p.m. Adjournment