Toxins possess the potential for use in biological attacks. These biomolecules produced by bacteria, fungi, insects, plants, vertebrate, and invertebrate animals act very quickly and are lethal in low doses. Their bacterial culturing systems are simple especially because extraction equipment is cheap and easily available.

As part of its regional-scale collaborations for biothreats reduction, GHD|EMPHNET is working with the ministries of health in Jordan and Morocco, and the Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF) to build the capacity of laboratory technicians in biological toxins handling and detection. This effort in biotoxin management is among the first of its kind in the region.

A training workshop was conducted between October 24-26, 2022, to raise the awareness of laboratory technicians and concerned professionals of handling, detection, and disruption of low efforts toxins (Ricin, Abrin, and Botulinum). The participants were from the National Institute of Hygiene in Morocco, JAF, and from the Central Public Health Laboratory of Jordan.

The training materials consisted of instructional videos provided by Tetracore, the manufacturer of the BioThreat Alert kits, as well as international resources regarding lab testing and handling of biological toxins.