Agenda, Subject: Meeting of the Advisory Committee for Biology and Medicine (Addendum to G Dean re Same, Dated 11/30/50, Attached)

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The twenty-fourth meeting of the Advisory Committee for Biology and Xedicine w i l l be held on Friday and Saturday, Eovember 10 and 11, 1950, atthe Atomic Energy Commission, West Building, 1901 Invitation is cordially extended to attend this meeting. -- 1. Consideration of d nute s of meeting held a t the Atomic Energy Commission i n Washington, D. C., on September 8 and 9, 1950, 2.. Report on support of research projects. . a. Proposals approved f o r negotiation Since September 8-9, 1950 New York University, College of Nedicine - Dr.A,br s hak - "Investigation of t h e Physiology and Bicchemistry of

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Committee f o f Biology and gedicineAdvisory for3i ology and Medicine was held on Friday and Saturday, November 10 and 11, 1950 a t the Atomic Energy Commission Alan Gregg, Chairman . Brig. Gen. James P. Cooney Ers. Frances H. Montgomery

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The Chairman convened the meeting a t 9:30 a.m. The first order of business presented tothe Committee by the Chairman was a discussion of the minutes of the meeting held at the AEC on September 8 and 9 , 1950. minutes were approved unanimously upon a motion by Report on Support of Research Projects The following projects i n bio1og;T and medicine and health physics which had been approved by the Division of Biology and Medicine since i t s meeting in September (1) New York University, College of Medicine - Dr. A. Biochemistry of Nuclei and Nucleic Acids I1 - $17,766

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(Approval of Renewal of Contract f o r Period October 1, Cartwright - ''Metabolism of Trace Elements i n Animals and Men with Special Reference t o Their Role b~ "3tudies on Monkeys Following Exposure t o Large Doses

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of Uraniun, Thorium, Zirconiun;, Titanium, Vznadium and (Budget breakdown not available) of I n jury and Convalescence"( Approval of Renewal of Contract for Period Zeptember 15, 1950 t o Jqtember 14, Previous Allocation $18,282 for 9/16/49 t o 9/15/50 Radiation on Enzyme Systems - $6267

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“The Effect of Incorporated Radioactivity on tie $34,608 - (Approval of Transfer t o AEC and renewal of ONR Contract NR-130-146 for period 12/1/50 t o 11/30/51) of Ionizing Irradiation on Mammals (App-oval of transfer toAX and renewal of ONR Contract KR 124-015 for

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Emitters From Bone - $9,288 Rundles - Wetabolism of Human Bone Marrow - $12,042 llBasic j tu dies in ~ t h eU ti liz ation of Cobalt 60 as a Kampmeier - "The Content in Human Tissues of Eleven Trace

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Wilson - It1Ietabolism of Organic Acids i n Higher Plants and Microorganisms" (Approval of renewal of contract Previous allocation - $6,500 for 1/1/50 t o 12/31/50 Biological Nitrogen Fixation with Isotopic Tracers'! - (Approval of renewal of contract for period 1/1/51 t o tlInvestigatlons of t h e Physiology, Genetics and HostParasite Relationships of Plant Pathogenic Fungi by Salamander11 (Approval of renewal of contract f o r period 12/12/50 t o 7/1/52) - $7,938 - (Cont'd on next page)

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(6) University o f North Carolina (Cont'd) Prev ioc s allocation $5,547 for 12/12/b9 t o 12/11/50 In connection with the discussion on the distribution o r apportionment of projects throughout the country t o universities and installations pr. Warren explained the operations that are involved, including budgets,, clearance, overhead problems, maintenance and guards, and a wide variety of fixed charges before a contract may be conThe individual members of the Committee expressed their views on the general scope of research activities that should be explored. It vas brought out that the AEC might be interested in furthering studies on blood preservation. The Committee agreed that research in the preservation of red cells should be strengthened as it is a problem of vast megnitude and will be of p-imary importance in civilian defense. Proposals Proposals Declined Declined- (1) Hackley Hospital, Muskegon, Michigan - Ur. Leland E. genesis of Radiation Death i n Mice" - $9,017. of Radioactive Phosphorus for Studying a Common Cold Virus inthe Chick Embrydl- $26,162.

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(4) Illinois Institute of.Techno l of j - Armour Research Growth, of Plant Seedlings as kf fected by Irradiation " "Study of the Effects of Neutron a d Gamma Radiation on t h e Metabolism, Reproduction and Heredity of Plants'' University of Cincinnati - Kcttering Laboratory - The Committee was of the opinion that xhen proposals are declined a brief reason for the declination should be stated on the agenda and a statemcnt made t o the investigator that reconsideration could be given to this proposal at a later date. Genetics Genetics Program Dr. Zelle explained the overall picture of the genetics program stating that there are roughly 20 contracts in this field. He summarized the work being undertaken by each investigator. that Dr. Lauren Zjonaldson atthe University of Washington, It was brought o u t Seattle, has a program i n marine genetics, using both trout and salmon. In this connection, Dr. Zelle and Dr. Curt Stern are planning to visit this project after the Committee meets at Hanford Operations Office i n January

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Dr. Zelle raised t h e question of whether work on human genetics should. be allowed t o develop by its ovm resources o r should the AEC enter into this area of by supporting certain well-qualified investigators, was generally agreed that the knowledge of human mutation rates is extremely important and the question o f AEC support .for human'genetics research w i l l be discussed further at the meeting t~ be held in January, 1951. ' Reports and Visits to Projects Considerable discussion ensued regarding written reports received from investigators of projects as well as of the necessity of the staff visiting the project. The Committee was of the opinion thata.short concise report was more advantageous than a lengthy one. brought out that it was infinitely more effective to make personal contacts with investigators even though it would involve a great deal of travel for the staff of the Division and also travel requires an adequate allocation of funds for this purpose. . In connection with the discussion inthe Biophysics Program it was stated that the overall activities can be divided into two categories, the first of which is a determination of tolerances and permissible doses by a human being and t h e calculation of maximum permissible isotopes 5x1 a i r and water.

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Dr. Claus stated that within the next two weeks there will be issued the official figures for the permissible dose for 'the hufnen being through external radiation and through radioactive isotopes. The Committee was gratified to learn that during the past two years there has not been a single case of radiation injury due t o the activities of the AEC, A t the conclusion of the discussion on the research programs Dr. Warren read the following letter - from dltr. Dean which reiterated his views on the- continuance of the research program: . "Thank you f o r your note of October 23rd and the enclosed correspondence with and from t h e Department of Agriculture and the National Institutes of Health. I think this is useful documentation for Bureau ofthe Budget purposes and for any attempts by t h e Appropriations Committees t o eliminate such programs. "You will be interested to know that in our conference with the President this week he was in full agreement with the Commission that it would be a great mistake for.us t o retrench in our research programs. He was quite positive about this and Iwas happy to be reassured." It was the belief of the Committee that research should include projects of an exploratoq7 nature with new ideas and new investigators within the limits ofthe atomic energy-field and not be restricted to specific categories and applications.

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Current Progrm ih Protection of PersonnelCurrent Protection Representatives of the medical branches of t h e Armed Services, which included General Wm. H. Powell, Admiral and Brig. Gen. James P. Cooney participated in discussions regarding their ' current programs for the protection of their personnel against acute injury from atomic As thc'discussions became more provocative, t h e Committee became aware that the big problem, becoming more acute each day.and for which there has not been ' found an answer, isthe physical reaction which.a cornanding officer might expect fromtroops who have been exposed t o heavy doses of ionizing radiztion. met her these troops will be fit for further combat duty is a complex and serious problem, and t h e subject will again be considered by a group of outstanding medical men and scientists at a meeting t o be held on Status of Status of Gdi ation Instruments Branch Branch blr. Butenhoff, Chid of the Radiation Instruments Branch explained the general status of the program, and displayed radiological instruments which are designed f o r field use by the Department of Defense and those designed for civil defense radiological monitoring by the AEC.

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General Cooney and Dr. Tolbert oriented thc Committee on the biological aspects of "Greenhouse." The Committee was gratified to learn that General Cooney is acting.as an advisor t o General Quesada on the Task Force as well as i n charge of Dr. Alvin Graves' radiological safety group. This involves the protection of all of the task force a t the time of detonation. Plutonium Permissible 'Dose Level Dr. Claus reviewed the work that has been done on the Plutonium Permissible Dose Level. ' He stated that the National Bureau of Standards Sub-committee on Internal Dose has taken a hand in the problem and has re-surveyed the various data which were mail able. on the problem. ' The Committee is hopeful that through these combined studies there will be a possibility of tying down the permissible dose of radium that can be taken by a human being. European Biological and Medical Sciences Dr. Gregg gave the Committee an interesting portrayal of his recent trip to Europe, giving his general impressions of t h e present state of the work now going on in biological and medical fields. it was his belief that the picture is very spotty with

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Sweden, Stvitzerland and to a certain extent Britain trying t o resume scientific research. Budget Budget Estimates Estimates Mr. Derrj and Mr. Stanwood opened the meeting by presenting a review of the present and proposed budget estimates which included construction needs and personnel. Budget charts prepared for exhibition tothe Budget Bureau were displayed and it w a s brought out picture by the Chief of each Branch discussing his respective This presentation w a s followed It was recognized that real advances had been made in compiling budget information f o r presentation since the inception of t h e Division. Machle of the NRC joined the discussions regarding the problems emanating from the ABCC i n Japan. was i n agreement that in view of disturbed situation in Japan it would be well t o have a representative of the NRC and the AEC, preferably a member of .the ACBM go t o Japan tostudy the problems. discussions, it was the sense of the Committee that the I n connection with these genetics program should be continued f o r ten years, recommendation for the continuance of the medical program

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and Dr. Goodpzsture who have agreed to go t o Japan for The statement which was prepared by the Committee at their September meeting and modified at this meeting concerning the recommendation thata rapid screening be made of a larger, number of the population i n Japan has been forwarded by Dr.. Warren t o the President of t h e National Academy of Sciences, It reads a s follows: IlThe Advisory Committee for,Biology and Medicine of t h e Atomic Energy Commission, having heard the reports of the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission, notes with satisfaction the prograss made inthe various aspects of the study including the work i n genetics, medicine, and inthe organization of the staff. "The Advisory Committee for Bio log j and Medicine notes, however, that little progress has been made i n screening larger groups of the population. While recognizing the importance of complete physical examinations and tho various laboratory studies, the Committee feels that it should re-emphasize its original desire for the screening of larger numbers of the population with a view t o discovering early changes inthe hematopoietic and other of the population can be accomplished without further delay, and it should be emphasized that this should be done Within the present budget and structure and not as an added activity. It is hoped that the screening of larger numbers " At a joint meeting of committees from the Division of Biology and Medicine of t h e Atomic Energy Commission and t h e National Research Council on February 4, 1950 it was agreed t h a t more emphasis should be placed upon the screening operation t o have zibnomalities. It Dr. Hardie reported that the administration ofthe contract with the NRC will be transferred from the

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tSCin 'Gzshington t o the NYOO effective December 1, 1950 in order for thc contsact t o follow the general pattern of all XEC contracts. to learn that the contract had been made unclassified The Committee was pleased under Glb-93 which will greatly facilitate its adminisDr. Bronk and Dr. fearson reviewed the recent developments and changes inthe Fellowship Programs. The Committee looked with favor upon t h e entire program' being retained under the auspices of the ORINS. I n this connection the following excerpt from a letter written by the General Manager toDr. Pollard ofthe ORINS mas placed inthe records "The Commission i s informed by the President of the National Academy of Sciences that the National Science Council i s prepared t o assist, including several ways, including the evaluation of all applicants on a nationwide basis. It is our understanding that the Uak Ridge Institute of Nuclear Studies will use the service and establish the order of selection of candidates, and this procedure meets with the approval of tho Commission. I n addition, the Oak Ridge Institute may require an additional panel of not exceeding 7or9scientists, drawn from over the country, t o make the final review a d appointment o f fellows i n establishing a total number of fellows t o be appointed i n each category, and by appljring the spec i zl criteria of paragraphs 3 and 8 of Industrial Industrial Medicine Fellowships Fe llovrs hiDs Dr. Hardie stated that two industrial medicine fellows had been selected,thst cle.zrances were now in process, and that it was expected they would begin their

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studies at the Universitir of Rochester on Hovembcr 27. Four fellowships are t o be offered next year and six will be offered if qualifications are about equal, ldr. Bowman briefed the Committee on the recent developments in the civil defense progran. Copies of the current releases.concerning civil defense were given t o each member of the Committee. …