of medications. The group released instructions for manufacturing pyrimethamine (Daraprim) from acetonitrile, ethyl bromide, and dicyandiamide with it. Laufer claims that it can also be used to make naloxone, cabotegravir, mifepristone, and misoprostol. Jeremiah Johnson, a researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has stated that using it would be very dangerous as it could create the wrong drug or the wrong dose. Eric von Hippel, an economist at MIT who supports DIY medication, has stated that the design could create chemical byproducts as well as or instead of the intended medication. Laufer claims that they have successfully synthesized cabotegravir, an experimental new integrase inhibitor, and asked heroin dealers to cut their product with it in order to help lower the rates of HIV infection among heroin users. Abortion In 2022, Four Thieves released detailed instructions for how to make an abortion pill, and subsequently distributed business cards at a hacker convention in Queens, New York that were labeled "This Card is an Abortion" and had three doses of misoprostol embedded in them. Reception Jose Gomez-Marquez, who is researching pharmaceuticals at MIT, has stated his belief that the group is more about publicity than medication, and is concerned about the danger of unvetted information being published. Vinay Prasad, a professor of medicine at Oregon Health & Science University, believes that DIY medication is "foolhardy". Jo Zayner, another biohacker, believes that the group's work is more symbolic than anything else. Chemist Derek Lowe described the Vice magazine article on the collective as "largely bullshit". He noted that they had synthesized known substances rather than producing new ones. He also pointed out that their proposal to combat Hepatitis C could accidentally cause treatment-resistant strains of Hepatitis C. Legal status Patricia Zettler, a former attorney at the FDA, believes that Four Thieves' work is legal because they are only providing information rather than drugs themselves. See also CRISPR Direct action Martin Shkreli References External links Anarchist communities Citizen science Hacker culture Do it yourself Intellectual property activism