[Memorandum to Acting Deputy Director for Intramural Research, NIH from F. William Dommel, Jr.]

was 5upplied to us, without either a Lttr or a form prohibiting its use on
man. After using the product in the experiment conducted with B. Moss on
monkeys, we cultivated the remainder and grew these viral cultures in our
laboratory.
Considering, that we received no prohibition. either verbal or written (as
is Usual) against the use of WR vaccinia cultures on man; and considering
that we had und ertaken no research program on humans cithcr with B.
M o,*-.,o rI with R. Gallo, in November 1986 our group took the iiitive or
using ft WR -viru~s [or the program of vaccination carried ouw on humans
in the Iramework of Franco-Zairian co-operation - not
A mericanc) Franco-Zairian involving our group, Gcneral %Salaun (I.N.R.D.
nswhazqa) and Professor Lurhunma (Kinshasa univcrsity cliniics).
Elvc ubjects. including Pror. a 7.agury, received scarification w&ith the
rcciumbiflart VacCine (strain WR), without experiencing any immediate or
delayed complications. We repcut here that among ocientists the use of
reagentS received from out~qidc is neVer restricted excCpt when spectrically
refILI*Lld.as by the N.I.H. scientists in other instanceq. (see 2.1.). For
cxaimple., in France, the Nv-irokigist J.C. Cherman, a co discov\-reri'of HIV,
used Ifo.r his- HI V culturces- the TCGF (called 112 no*-&) that wc supplied him at
hsrequest in Februiary 18 withut inrorminug us of the use for which he
intended it,. This wve learnied only later from his p)Ub.licationl in i':e.n
turn.,\without any7 obligation to refer to him on the mattcr, our group
infected human cellsz with the IIIV (strain LAW Il1TlNV111D) that Chermaii
had given us in January 1986 and Lht h e h'dve s.1ince been sustaining in
our laboratory. This was entirely proper, since Lherman had gi Ven1no