UNSAFE BIOTECHNOLOGY LABORATORY - NO ACCOUNTABILITY FOR INJURY - ILLNESS - DISEASE

WAS WORKING FOR A BIOTECH COMPANY SAFE? NOT WHEN ONE IS EXPOSED TO KNOWN AND UNKNOWN MICROORGANISMS. READ ABOUT THE EXPERIENCES OF WORKING FOR AGRAQUEST, INC. IN DAVIS - CALIFORNIA

  • Increase font size
  • Default font size
  • Decrease font size
Home CORRESPONDENCE REQUESTING ASSISTANCE AUGUST 27, 2009 LETTER/PRESENTED TO: COMMISSION ON HEALTH AND SAFETY AND WORKERS' COMPENSATION

AUGUST 27, 2009 LETTER/PRESENTED TO: COMMISSION ON HEALTH AND SAFETY AND WORKERS' COMPENSATION

E-mail Print PDF
Sandra (Sandi) Trend
(ADDRESS OMITTED FOR
ELECTRONIC VIEWING)


August 27, 2009

Commission on Health and Safety and Workers' Compensation
1515 Clay St,
Oakland, CA 94612

RE:  Complaint

California is NOT protecting employees rights to work in safe and healthy environments nor are injured employees given the right to know of the hazards they have been exposed to.

California employers, who willfully violate Federal and state laws are not held accountable,  they are given the green light to continue to violate the law and their misdeeds of fraud and concealment are hidden under the umbrella of protection within the corrupt California worker’s compensation system.

My son, David Bell worked as a laboratory Assistant Researcher/Microbiologist (to obtain lab hours for his Bachelor of Science Degree) for one of these employers, Agraquest Inc. (AQ)  a biotechnology company that discovers, screens and experiments with known and unknown microorganisms, AQ searches the world for microorganisms; and brings them into the U.S., mostly in soil, They receive microorganisms from “microbe hunters” and other biotech companies; not known is whether they were natural or mutations and had been genetically modified. At last count there were over 23,000 microorganisms in AQ’s “microbe collection”.

David also worked with and was exposed to larvae and live insects.

After 5 months and 9 days at AQ, after vomiting and being sick for days David had purulent bloody pus draining from his nose.  He told his supervisor he was sick and clocked out.  He then went to Immediate Care Medical Clinic; was placed on the broad spectrum antibiotic Zithromax and told to see an ear, nose and throat specialist.  This he did; now the left side of his face and teeth were numb.  He was scheduled for the first, of what would become four major sinus surgeries only seven ( 7 ) days after seeking emergency medical care.  He’s had countless other sinus procedures in physicians offices through the years.

David stopped producing enough B-cells for an intact immune system; for 3 years, every 28 days he was hooked up to an IV pump receiving IMMUNOGLOBULIN infusions at the hospital; each lasting up to 7 hours.

Several of David’s vital organs have been affected as the result of his employment at the AQ laboratory; respiratory, lungs, heart, liver, spleen and GI tract.

Denied by AQ as being the result of David’s workplace illness and disease were nineteen (19 ) fungus and bacteria that have been identified in David’s blood, sputum and/or nose cultures and/or lab results showing levels of antibodies as a result of exposure; ranging from positive to HIGH POSITIVE.  ALL of these fungus and bacteria are linked to AQ’s products, patents and/or other companies patents that the scientists at AQ are listed as inventors.

This is David’s medical from 1995-1998; seven ( 7 ) pages total, 1 page is a Confidential Health Information Form. This is his medical costs after working for AQ beginning 1999 through 2005 with a cost of over $333,000, mostly paid by medicare and none by AQ’s workers comp carrier.  I stopped calculating after 2005 although to this day he is still sick and has mucous of every shade of the rainbow coming from his nose.  That is, when he can get it out.

As David’s mother, I swear to you; he has never been sick like this before he went to work at AQ.  He had seasonal allergies, normal colds and flu and he did have a hernia surgery at the age of 6 because of a car accident.

California has to stop protecting businesses and start protecting it’s workers.

Thank you,


Sandi Trend

cc:  file

attachments:   Three ( 3 ) photo’s

1)  David Bell medical prior to working at AQ; 3 years (1995-1998)
(7 pages ; (1 page is a Confidential Health Information Form) and
comparison to David Bell Medical billings after working at AQ;                     (1999-2005)

2)  David Bell medical billings after working at AQ (1999-2005)

3)  Comparison of David Bell medical prior to working at AQ; 3 years             (1995-1998) and  David Bell medical billings after working at AQ             (1999-2005)

COMMISSION_1_1 COMMISSION_2_2


COMMISSION_3_1
 

FEATURED VIDEOS, AUDIOS, ARTICLES, EDITORIALS, BLOGS





marti.sandi.cssandra3.16.11show





martiSHOW3.23.2011

****

*IS THE WORLD BEING  LED TO BELIEVE THAT ONLY "NATURAL" (naturally found in the environment)  BACTERIA AND/OR FUNGUS IS ONLY BEING USED IN MICROBIAL PRODUCTS; BIOPESTICIDES, BIOINSECTICIDES, BIOFUNGICIDES ETC. WHICH ARE BEING USED ON OUR FOOD CROPS, ORNAMENTALS AND/OR USED FOR INSECT CONTROL?   THIS IS NOT ALWAYS THE CASE... "MUTANTS" ARE BEING USED THAT THE PUBLIC IS NOT AWARE OF
Are we being led to believe these microbial products are safe??
*It seems that using "mutants" and mutants created using recombinant techniques. (last 2 patents below) doesn’t qualify the claim of "naturally found" bacteria and fungus which are claimed as being the “active ingredient” in microbial biocontrol products.
*When searching the United States Patent Office for the search terms of “Agraquest” and “mutants” the results were twenty (20) United States patents; that were assigned to Agraquest alone and furthermore does not take into account International patents. These patents uses the wording; mutants, mutants thereof and/or recombinant techniques.  There are many MANY more patents that don't list Agraquest as the holder of the patent; but Agraquest's scientists were listed as "inventors" on other company patents. (these are not listed below)
*The reader is invited; NO... encouraged to view the following twenty (20) Agraquest United States patents and decide for themselves whether we can be 100% certain that only “naturally found in the environment” bacteria and/or fungus is being used on our food crops, ornamentals and/or used for insect control.... OR are mutants being used?

READ MORE HERE


AUDIO:   "Falling To Be Held" fallingTObeHELD

Song: "Control" Listen → HERE

Applicable Lyrics:

You Can’t Control Me
You Know Me
I’ve had it up to here with your lies and your ties
~WHAT ABOUT MY LIFE ?~

PRESENTATION - FRAUD IN THE COURT - COMMITTED BY JUDGE SUZANNE F. DUGAN IN CALIFORNIA WORKERS COMPENSATION SYSTEM; by Sandi Trend

VIDEO - INJURED AGRAQUEST BIOTECH WORKER, DAVID BELL TELLS HIS STORY; by Labor Video Project

VIDEO - Workers Comp, The Destruction Of Ca-OSHA/EPA And The Case Of David Bell; by Labor Video Project

VIDEO - Conflict of Interest By Judge Says Sandi Trend, Mother of Injured Agraquest Biotech Worker Bell; by Labor Video Project

VIDEO - INJURED WORKERS AND ADVOCATES DEMAND THAT INSURANCE COMP FRAUD BE PROSECUTED; by Labor Video Project

VIDEO - 12/10/2009; SANDI TREND, MOTHER OF INJURED BIOTECH WORKER DAVID BELL ASKS CALIFORNIA COMMISSION ON HEALTH AND SAFETY & WORKERS COMPENSATION WHAT "GAMING THE SYSTEM IS?"; by Labor Video Project

VIDEO - Injured Worker, DAVID BELL's Mother Charges Fraud On 9/9/2009 At the California Department of Insurance; Fraud Assessment Comission Meeting; by Labor Video Project

VIDEO - JUNE 17, 2009 SANDI TREND SPEAKS OUT ABOUT FRAUD BY DISTRICT ATTORNEYS AT THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF INSURANCE; FRAUD ASSESSMENT COMMISSION; by Labor Video Project

AUDIO - KDRT 95.7 PODCAST of Davis California's Journalist Interview - with David Bell, Doug Haney and Sandi Trend; by Davis, CA Journalist, David Greenwald *Yolo Judicial Watch)

ARTICLE - Biotech Workers Struggle For Safety Measures; by Seth Sandrosky: The Populist

ARTICLE - Biotech canaries - Sickened workers get little relief; by Seth Sandrosky: The Sacramento News & Review

ARTICLE - MARCH-APRIL 2010: COUNCIL FOR RESPONSIBLE GENETICS "GeneWatch MAGAZINE EDITORIAL on David Bell and Agraquest titled; TeaTime In The Lab; by GeneWatch Editor, Sam Anderson

ARTICLE - The Fungus and Bacteria of Deregulation and biotech Worker David Bell; by Steve Zeltzer - LaborNet.org

ARTICLE - Cal-Osha: Going Down The Tubes?; by Larry Rose MD, MPH Cal/OSHA Medical Unit

ARTICLE - The Last Physician/Medical Officer Position is Eliminated at Cal/OSHA; by Larry Rose MD, MPH Cal/OSHA Medical Unit

ARTICLE - Blood, phlegm and tears; by Seth Sandronsky - Sacramento News & Review

ARTICLE - The Criminal Cover-up Of Pam Marrone's Agraquest Operation; www.indybay.org/newsitems Central Valley | Labor & Workers

ARTICLE - Toxic Dump Sites And Agraquest/Pam Marrone Case May Get Light In Davis, California Hearing; by David Greenwald - Central Valley | Environment & Forest Defense | Health, Housing, and Public Services | Labor & Workers

ARTICLE - Local biotech employee says health affected by work.. Officials say no threat to public health; by California Aggie - Oooja Kumar

BLOG - Biotech Worker Safety; by JEEG, The Council for Responsible Genetics - GeneWatch

BLOG - Mother of Injured Biotech Worker Speaks Out On Conflicts Of Interest; by JEEG..."This could prove sufficient evidence to reopen the worker's compensation claim." by Council for Responsible Genetics

BLOG - MAN BECOMES INFECTED WHILE WORKING AT BIOTECH, AGRAQUEST; by WatchDog on Science

BLOG - Did Davis Biotech Firm Expose Davis to Potentially Dangerous Pathogens?; by The People's Vanguard of Davis

BLOG - California Aggie Covers Issue of Agraquest; Yolo County Health Discounts Health Concerns; by The People's Vanguard of Davis

BLOG - The Vanguard's Article on AgraQuest Provokes Strong Response From both County Health Director and Building Owner; by The People's Vanguard of Davis

BLOG - Did Congressman Lungren Ignore Potential National Security Threat Posed By AgraQuest's Imporation of Foreign Soils?; by The People's Vanguard of Davis

 


RedditDel.icio.usGet more widgets at VivoCiti.comDiggGoogleHuggReddot@eShiok!LiveFacebookSlashdotNetscapeTechnoratiStumbleUponSpurlWistsSimpyNewsvineBlinklistFurlFarkBlogmarksYahooSmarkingNetvouzShadowsRawSugarMa.gnoliaPlugIMSquidooco.mmentsBlogMemesFeedMeLinksBlinkBitsTailranklinkaGoGo
Module is designed by http://www.vivociti.com
eXTReMe Tracker

Newsflash

Identification and Characterization of Novel Genetic Markers Associated with Biological Control Activities in Bacillus subtilis
-Raghavendra Joshi and Brian B. McSpadden Gardener Department of Plant Pathology, The Ohio State University, OARDC, 1680 Madison Ave., Wooster 44691.
Accepted for publication 3 October 2005.

PAGE 4:
RESULTS
Characterization of strain-specific DNA fragments. In order to identify DNA markers for biological control in B. subtilis, SSH was conducted to identify sequences present in the genomes of strains GB03 and QST713 but absent in the genome of strain 168. In all, 149 subtracted fragments (74 from GB03 and 75 from QST713) were cloned and analyzed. Fragment lengths varied from 180 to 1,520 bp, with a median fragment size of 560 bp. Se- quence analyses revealed that 80 of the subtracted fragments (36 from GB03 and 44 from QST713) had significant nucleotide homology (E value <1E-4) to previously identified Bacillus sequences. The sequences of these fragments can be found in GenBank under accession numbers DQ011366-401 (GB03) and DQ0113402-446 (QST713) in the same order as presented in Tables 1 and 2, respectively. In several instances, clones from both strains GB03 and QST713 were identified that had similarity to gene fragments from homologous operons. These included genes for the biosynthesis of cyclic lipopeptides (bam/bmy, fen, and srf ) and the cell wall component teichuronic acid (tua). Subtracted fragments matching the yndJ gene from B. subtilis subsp. amyloliquefaciens strain FZB42 also were recovered from both strains GB03 and QST713. Additionally, multiple sporulation gene fragments (spo) were found in both subtracted libraries.

DISCUSSION:
We characterized over 60,000 bp of genomic sequence obtained from strains of B. subtilis used in two different biocontrol prod- ucts. Nearly half of the 149 sequences we analyzed were sufficiently different from those presently in GenBank that no functional assignments could be made (data not shown). We expect that many of those unique sequences represent noncoding regions which are likely to be strain specific and therefore of limited value for population studies. Nonetheless, further characterization of these unique sequences is warranted because some may encode novel genes, an unknown fraction of which may be involved in biological control. Of the 80 Bacillus-like sequences we obtained, 65 were associated with genes predicted to encode a variety of metabolic functions. Much research has gone into establishing the function of B. subtilis genes, but such work has yet to reveal the function of all of the ORFs identified in strain 168 (48). In addition, their potential roles in bacterial fitness in the natural environment and biocontrol activities in a managed environment remain highly speculative. Nonetheless, several of these gene fragments identified present intriguing new avenues for investigating the nature of antibiotic-mediated biocontrol. For example, dppC is pre- dicted to code for dipeptide transporters and the homologs identi-

Nearly half of the 149 sequences we analyzed were sufficiently different from those presently in GenBank that no functional assignments could be made

Identification of subtracted genome fragments obtained from Bacillus subtilis QST713 [AGRAQUEST]

Bacillus amyloliquefaciens- RESULTS
Subtracted fragments matching the yndJ gene from B. subtilis subsp. amyloliquefaciens strain FZB42 also were recovered from both strains GB03 and QST713.
Bacillus  cereus - RESULTS
.....with the exception that one of two faint bands amplified from most B. cereus strains comigrated with the ituC product amplified from the positive control strain, QST713.
...And, interestingly enough, only some of the B. cereus isolates and B. pumilus GB34 were maximally antagonistic to Phytophthora sojae in these assays, though QST713 did show a marginal degree of inhibition in all assays (i.e., average score of 1.0).

Bacillus  licheniformis (page 7)
...However, similar types of associations were observed in other Bacillus spp. As a group, all of the B. pumilus and B. licheniformis isolates scored (weakly) positive for one or more gene markers and were more inhibitory to R. solani (P = 0.01) compared with those strains lacking the scored markers. Additionally, the two B. pumilus isolates that were scored weakly positive for the bmy gene (i.e., 1.1a2 and 2.5a) were significantly more inhibitory to Pythium ultimum than the other isolates lacking all of the markers (P = 0.04). However, presence of the amplifiable markers was not necessarily a good predictor of biocontrol capacity in B. pumilus because the commercialized biocontrol strain GB34 was scored negative for all of the amplifiable targets, yet displayed in vitro in- hibition capacities similar to those of the commercialized B. subtilis strains GB03, MBI600, and QST713.