Medicine for a sickly world

摘要

Whether they are occurring in nature or being created in a lab, biological threats represent a global moral burden. Right now infectious diseases threaten personal, national and international security, and limit personal and economic potential. Worldwide, they cause more than 18 million deaths a year - one-third of all human deaths. Among these deaths are many that could be prevented by concentrated efforts in the research, development and distribution of new drugs. While dangerous pathogens will not mobilise armies nor annex land, they can, if unchecked, inflict human costs rivalling those of armed conflict.