The document discusses the history of biological warfare and bioterrorism, including several notable cases between 1984 and 2001. It defines biological warfare as the deliberate use of disease-causing agents against humans or animals, and bioterrorism as terrorism using biological agents. The document also outlines characteristics that make biological agents effective for biological warfare and bioterrorism, and provides examples of commonly studied agents, categorizing them based on their potential threat level.
The document discusses the history of biological warfare and bioterrorism, including several notable cases between 1984 and 2001. It defines biological warfare as the deliberate use of disease-causing agents against humans or animals, and bioterrorism as terrorism using biological agents. The document also outlines characteristics that make biological agents effective for biological warfare and bioterrorism, and provides examples of commonly studied agents, categorizing them based on their potential threat level.
Copyright:
Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
The document discusses the history of biological warfare and bioterrorism, including several notable cases between 1984 and 2001. It defines biological warfare as the deliberate use of disease-causing agents against humans or animals, and bioterrorism as terrorism using biological agents. The document also outlines characteristics that make biological agents effective for biological warfare and bioterrorism, and provides examples of commonly studied agents, categorizing them based on their potential threat level.
Copyright:
Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
• 1984 - USA - Rajneeshee bioterror attackIn Oregon in
1984, followers of the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh attempted to control a local election by incapacitating the local population. This was done by infecting salad bars in eleven restaurants, produce in grocery stores, doorknobs, and other public domains with Salmonella typhimurium bacteria in the city of The Dalles, Oregon. The attack infected 751 people with severe food poisoning. However, there were no fatalities. This incident was the first known bioterrorist attack in the United States in the 20th century. • 1993 - Japan - Aum Shinrikyo anthrax release in Kameido In June 1993 the religious group Aum Shinrikyo released anthrax in Tokyo. Eyewitnesses reported a foul odor. The attack was a total failure, infecting not a single person. This case shows how difficult it is to aerosolize anthrax spores in high concentration.[ • 2001 - USA - Anthrax Attacks In September and October 2001, several cases of anthrax broke out in the United States in the 2001 anthrax attacks, caused deliberately. Letters laced with infectious anthrax were delivered to news media offices and the U.S Congress. The letters killed 5. Tests on the anthrax strain used in the attack pointed to a domestic source, possibly from the biological weapons program. Still the attacks provoked efforts to define biodefense and biosecurity, where more limited definitions of biosafety had focused on unintentional or accidental impacts of agricultural and medical technologies. Biological Warfare and Bio Terrorism Definition of Biological Warfare • Deliberate use of disease-causing biological agents such as protozoa, fungi, bacteria, protists, or viruses, to kill or incapacitate humans, other animals or plants; – Employed in various ways to gain a strategic or tactical advantage over an adversary, either by threat or by actual deployment; Definition of Bioterrorism • Terrorism involving the intentional release or dissemination of biological agents (bacteria, viruses, or toxins), that may be in a naturally- occurring or in a human-modified form “Genuine”Effects • Biological weapons allow for the potential to create a level of destruction and loss of life far in excess of nuclear, chemical or conventional weapons, relative to their mass and cost of development and storage; • Effective, and therefore might not immediately stop an opposing force; • Unintended Mechanism poses risk; Characteristics of Good Biological Agent used for B.W. and B.T. • high infectivity • high virulence • non-availability of vaccines • and availability of an effective and efficient delivery system; • “Stability of the weaponized agent” Examples of Good B.A. for B.W. and B.T. Scientific Name Common Name Target System
Bacillus anthracis Anthrax Respiratory System
Vibrio cholerae Cholera Virus Digestive System
Rickettsia rickettsii (RMSF). Immune System
Rickettsia prowazekii Immune Sytem
Francisella tularensis Tularemia Immune System
Scientific Name Common Name Target System
Coxiella burnetii Q-Fever Respiratory
System Chlamydophila Respiratory psittaci System Burkholderia ALL pseudomallei Burkholderia mallei Any way to prevent? • It Goes with the letters: BWC • Preparedness • Biosurveillance TYPES of B.W. and B.T. • Anti-personnel – Disable the military foundation of the country; – Delay attacks; • Anti-agriculture – Disable backbone of economy; – Divert the attention of the Gov’t to the agricultural sector • The botulinum toxin is relatively easy to produce in large quantities using Clostridium bacteria. It is also easy to transport. The extreme potency and deadliness of the toxin have made it a subject of biological warfare research. The Japanese carried out experiments on human prisoners in China during the 1930s to test the toxin. The former Soviet Union produced large stockpiles of the toxin during the Cold War. Following the Persian Gulf War of 1990 and 1991, inspectors found that Iraq under Saddam Hussein had stockpiles of botulinum toxin and a program to weaponize the toxin in bombs and warheads. Types of Agents • Category A – Tularemia – Anthrax – Smallpox – Botulinum Toxin (Clostridium botulinum) – Bubonic Plague (Yersinia pestis) – Viral Hemorrhagic fever (Ebola and Marsburg) • Category B – Category B agents are moderately easy to disseminate and have low mortality rates. – Brucellosis (Brucella species) – Epsilon toxin of Clostridium perfringens – Food safety threats (e.g., Salmonella species, E coli O157:H7, Shigella, Staphylococcus aureus) – Glanders[30] (Burkholderia mallei) – Melioidosis (Burkholderia pseudomallei) – Psittacosis (Chlamydia psittaci) • Category B – Q fever (Coxiella burnetii)[33] – Ricin [34] toxin from Ricinus communis (castor beans) – Abrin toxin from Abrus precatorius (Rosary peas) – Staphylococcal enterotoxin B – Typhus (Rickettsia prowazekii) – Viral encephalitis (alphaviruses, e.g.: Venezuelan equine encephalitis, eastern equine encephalitis, western equine encephalitis) – Water supply threats (e.g., Vibrio cholerae,[35] Cryptosporidium parvum) • Category C – Category C agents nd H1N1 have been poteare emerging pathogens that might be engineered for mass dissemination because of their availability, ease of production and dissemination, high mortality rate, or ability to cause a major health impact. This category includes viruses such as the Nipah virus and hantavirus. SARS antial diseases in this category. History • Talk to the gladiators; • But before talking to them, talk to the Hitites; • Then talk to Hannibal;