Anthrax weaponization is the development and deployment of the bacterium ''
Bacillus anthracis'' or, more commonly, its
spore
In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many plants, algae, f ...
(referred to as
anthrax), as a
biological weapon
A biological agent (also called bio-agent, biological threat agent, biological warfare agent, biological weapon, or bioweapon) is a bacterium, virus, protozoan, parasite, fungus, or toxin that can be used purposefully as a weapon in bioterroris ...
. As a biological weapon, anthrax has been used in
biowarfare
Biological warfare, also known as germ warfare, is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, insects, and fungi with the intent to kill, harm or incapacitate humans, animals or plants as an act of war. Bi ...
and
bioterrorism
Bioterrorism is terrorism involving the intentional release or dissemination of biological agents. These agents are bacteria, viruses, insects, fungi, and/or toxins, and may be in a naturally occurring or a human-modified form, in much the same ...
since 1914.
However, in 1975 the
Biological Weapons Convention
The Biological Weapons Convention (BWC), or Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC), is a disarmament treaty that effectively bans biological and toxin weapons by prohibiting their development, production, acquisition, transfer, stockpil ...
prohibited the "development, production and stockpiling"
of biological weapons. It has since been used in bioterrorism.
Anthrax spores can cause infection from inhalation, skin contact, ingestion or injection and when untreated can lead to death.
Likely delivery methods of weaponized anthrax include aerial dispersal or dispersal through livestock, notable bioterrorism uses include the
2001 anthrax attacks and an incident in 1993 by the
Aum Shinrikyo
, formerly , is a Japanese doomsday cult founded by Shoko Asahara in 1987. It carried out the deadly Tokyo subway sarin attack in 1995 and was found to have been responsible for the Matsumoto sarin attack the previous year.
The group says ...
group in Japan.
Biological overview
Concentrated anthrax spores, and not necessarily the bacterium ''
Bacillus anthracis'', pose the biggest risk as a biological weapons to humans.
When airborne, anthrax spores are not easily detectable, and are several
microns
The micrometre ( international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American spelling), also commonly known as a micron, is a unit of length in the International System of Unit ...
in diameter.
They are able to reach deep into the lungs when inhaled. Once the spores are in the lungs they are then able to replicate in blood, travel to the
lymph node
A lymph node, or lymph gland, is a kidney-shaped organ of the lymphatic system and the adaptive immune system. A large number of lymph nodes are linked throughout the body by the lymphatic vessels. They are major sites of lymphocytes that inclu ...
s, and produce toxins which lead to death.
Post exposure symptoms resemble
flu-like illness
Influenza-like illness (ILI), also known as flu-like syndrome or flu-like symptoms, is a medical diagnosis of possible influenza or other illness causing a set of common symptoms. These include fever, shivering, chills, malaise, dry cough, lo ...
followed by a
fulminant
Fulminant () is a medical descriptor for any event or process that occurs suddenly and escalates quickly, and is intense and severe to the point of lethality, i.e., it has an explosive character. The word comes from Latin ''fulmināre'', to strik ...
phase of severe acute respiratory distress, shock and, ultimately death.
Potential threat to the population and economy
Anthrax spores are able to be dispersed via multiple methods and infect humans with ease.
The symptoms present as a
common cold
The common cold or the cold is a viral infectious disease of the upper respiratory tract that primarily affects the respiratory mucosa of the nose, throat, sinuses, and larynx. Signs and symptoms may appear fewer than two days after exposu ...
or
flu
Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These symptom ...
, and may take weeks before appearing.
The destructive effects of an anthrax attack on a large city may have the destructive capacity of a
nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bom ...
.
Threat to the population
A
mathematical model
A mathematical model is a description of a system using mathematical concepts and language. The process of developing a mathematical model is termed mathematical modeling. Mathematical models are used in the natural sciences (such as physics, ...
of a simulated large-scale airborne anthrax attack in a large city (1 kg anthrax spores in a city of 10 million people) was created, which takes into account the dispersion of spores, the age-dependent dose-response, the dynamics of disease progression and the timing and organization of medical intervention.
The results of this model with the most efficient medical response resulted in more than deaths, which increases by a factor of 7 with slower
antibiotic
An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the treatment and prevention of ...
distribution.
Threat to the economy
Outside of the initial threat to individuals there are the costs of economic disruption, decontamination and treatment from such an event.
The economic costs of the
2001 anthrax attacks resulted in over 100 million dollars being spent to decontaminate postal plants. The contamination is thought to have been less than 1 gram of anthrax spores in the facilities.
The cost to decontaminate the
Hart Senate Office Building
The Philip A. Hart Senate Office Building is the third U.S. Senate office building, and is located on 2nd Street NE between Constitution Avenue NE and C Street NE in Washington, D.C., in the United States. Construction began in January 1975, an ...
after the
2001 anthrax attacks cost approximately 23 million dollars, with approximately 2 grams of anthrax spores present.
Containment treatment and avoidance
Detection of airborne anthrax requires 24–48 hours. Rapid detection in the atmosphere is not yet technologically effective. The system put in place on 22 January 2003 to assist in detecting an airborne anthrax attack by the United States is the
U.S. Bio-watch Surveillance Network, which is able to detect airborne anthrax within 24–48 hours, however with some
false positives and false negatives
A false positive is an error in binary classification in which a test result incorrectly indicates the presence of a condition (such as a disease when the disease is not present), while a false negative is the opposite error, where the test result ...
, leading to severe lag in detection and critical time lost for prevention and treatment.
Vaccination to anthrax is available, requiring 6 shots over an 18-month period and annual
booster shots
A booster dose is an extra administration of a vaccine after an earlier (primer) dose. After initial immunization, a booster provides a re-exposure to the immunizing antigen. It is intended to increase immunity against that antigen back to protec ...
for full immunity.
Vaccination of military personnel and first responders is vital to sustain a post attack response.
The complete vaccination of an entire population can be achieved over a period of years, resulting in the reduction of risk from anthrax comparable to the reduction of risk of nuclear weapons by
anti-ballistic missile
An anti-ballistic missile (ABM) is a surface-to-air missile designed to counter ballistic missiles (missile defense). Ballistic missiles are used to deliver nuclear weapon, nuclear, Chemical weapon, chemical, Bioagent, biological, or conventiona ...
systems.
Once exposure occurs and before the fulminant stage, antibiotic treatment of
ciprofloxacin
Ciprofloxacin is a fluoroquinolone antibiotic used to treat a number of bacterial infections. This includes bone and joint infections, intra abdominal infections, certain types of infectious diarrhea, respiratory tract infections, skin inf ...
400 mg or
doxycycline
Doxycycline is a broad-spectrum tetracycline class antibiotic used in the treatment of infections caused by bacteria and certain parasites. It is used to treat bacterial pneumonia, acne, chlamydia infections, Lyme disease, cholera, typhus, an ...
100 mg intravenously twice daily as well as two other antibiotics (
clindamycin
Clindamycin is an antibiotic medication used for the treatment of a number of bacterial infections, including osteomyelitis (bone) or joint infections, pelvic inflammatory disease, strep throat, pneumonia, acute otitis media (middle ear infec ...
,
vancomycin
Vancomycin is a glycopeptide antibiotic medication used to treat a number of bacterial infections. It is recommended intravenously as a treatment for complicated skin infections, bloodstream infections, endocarditis, bone and joint infections, ...
,
imipenem
Imipenem (trade name Primaxin among others) is an intravenous β-lactam antibiotic discovered by Merck scientists Burton Christensen, William Leanza, and Kenneth Wildonger in the mid-1970s. Carbapenems are highly resistant to the β-lactamase enz ...
,
meropenem
Meropenem, sold under the brand name Merrem among others, is an intravenous β-lactam antibiotic used to treat a variety of bacterial infections. Some of these include meningitis, intra-abdominal infection, pneumonia, sepsis, and anthrax.
...
,
chloramphenicol,
penicillin
Penicillins (P, PCN or PEN) are a group of β-lactam antibiotics originally obtained from ''Penicillium'' moulds, principally '' P. chrysogenum'' and '' P. rubens''. Most penicillins in clinical use are synthesised by P. chrysogenum using ...
,
rifampicin,
clarithromycin
Clarithromycin, sold under the brand name Biaxin among others, is an antibiotic used to treat various bacterial infections. This includes strep throat, pneumonia, skin infections, ''H. pylori'' infection, and Lyme disease, among others. Clarith ...
) and close clinical observation for a 60-100 day period is recommended.
Methods of dispersal
Aerial
The passive dispersal of anthrax spores aerially has occurred from rooftops (
Aum Shinrikyo
, formerly , is a Japanese doomsday cult founded by Shoko Asahara in 1987. It carried out the deadly Tokyo subway sarin attack in 1995 and was found to have been responsible for the Matsumoto sarin attack the previous year.
The group says ...
), from aircraft (
Operation Cherry Blossoms at Night) or potentially, as suggested in 2002, by United States'
President George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
, "a small container and one terrorist"
Missile
An
intercontinental ballistic missile
An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a ballistic missile with a range greater than , primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery (delivering one or more thermonuclear warheads). Conventional, chemical, and biological weapons c ...
warhead containing anthrax may be able to effectively disperse anthrax spores. North Korea is believed to be conducting tests on anthrax filled warheads which may be deployed on
Hwasong-15
The Hwasong-15 () is an intercontinental ballistic missile developed by North Korea. It had its maiden flight on 28 November 2017, around 3 a.m. local time. It is the first ballistic missile developed by North Korea that is theoretically capab ...
missiles, which could be used to contaminate areas, such as military bases, in a time of war for periods of months.
The concerns of reentry temperatures and pressure of the anthrax filled warhead are able to be overcome by thermal insulation of the payload.
Bomb
Similar to a warhead, an anthrax filled bomb, such as the
E61 Anthrax Bomblet or other N-bomb
cluster munition
A cluster munition is a form of air-dropped or ground-launched explosive weapon that releases or ejects smaller submunitions. Commonly, this is a cluster bomb that ejects explosive bomblets that are designed to kill personnel and destroy vehicl ...
filled with anthrax spores could allow an area to be contaminated for months, or decades.
In the case of Gruinard Island testing N-bomb cluster munition containing anthrax spores contaminated the island from 1942 until a decontamination effort in 1986.
Livestock
Anthrax spores are not only able to be used as a weapon to directly infect humans. They are also able to target
livestock
Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...
, which may lead to transmission of anthrax between both animals and humans.
This method may use another mechanism to infect livestock, where inevitably the livestock become a mechanism to disperse anthrax themselves and also result in the loss of the livestock.
However, it can also be achieved with direct feeding, such as the "cattle cakes" containing anthrax spores, which were kept on hand by the
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
for aerial dispersal during the
second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
This was to be used in retaliation to any biological warfare by
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
.
1978–1984 Rhodesian anthrax epidemic
The largest anthrax epidemic in the last 200 years occurred in
Rhodesia
Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...
(now
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...
) in the 1980s, where there may be evidence of deliberate anthrax releases by
Rhodesian
Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...
and
South African forces
The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) comprises the armed forces of South Africa. The commander of the SANDF is appointed by the President of South Africa from one of the armed services. They are in turn accountable to the Minister ...
, and is the progenitor of South Africa's biological weapons program (
Project Coast
Project Coast was a 1980s top-secret chemical and biological weapons (CBW) program instituted by the apartheid-era government of South Africa. Project Coast was the successor to a limited postwar CBW program, which mainly produced the lethal age ...
).
This epidemic is responsible for cattle and 200 human fatalities.
History of diplomacy
1925 Geneva Protocol
As a response to the biological and chemical atrocities of the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the
Geneva Protocol
The Protocol for the Prohibition of the Use in War of Asphyxiating, Poisonous or other Gases, and of Bacteriological Methods of Warfare, usually called the Geneva Protocol, is a treaty prohibiting the use of chemical and biological weapons in ...
was created.
This prevented "Asphyxiating, Poisonous, or other Gasses or Bacteriological Methods of Warfare" being used.
However this treaty did not prohibit the production or the research of biological agents, and inevitably amendments were made to allow the use of biological weapons in retaliation.
1969 Nixon terminates United States biological weapons program
An executive order by United States
president Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
in 1969 terminated the
United States' biological weapons program.
This led to the destruction of the biological weapons arsenal and the termination of research and production of biological weapons.
This change lead to increased resources for the research and creation of methods such as "vaccines, treatments and diagnostic tests", to defend against biological weapons.
1972–1975 Biological Weapons Convention
The
Biological Weapons Convention
The Biological Weapons Convention (BWC), or Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC), is a disarmament treaty that effectively bans biological and toxin weapons by prohibiting their development, production, acquisition, transfer, stockpil ...
is a treaty that prohibits the "Development, Production and Stockpiling of Biological and Toxin Weapons" and the destruction of those which were already in existence, including anthrax.
This treaty was created based on proposals by Great Britain and the
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republic ...
nations, where it was ratified in April 1972 and went into force in 1975.
Over 100 nations signed the treaty, including the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Brazil and Iraq.
History of use and development
1914–1918 First use as an act of aggression
During the
first World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, evidence suggests that the
German army used anthrax to infect the livestock of
Allied Nations
The Allies, formally referred to as the United Nations from 1942, were an international military coalition formed during the Second World War (1939–1945) to oppose the Axis powers, led by Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and Fascist Italy ...
,
resulting in the death of many livestock intended for trade between allied forces.
1932–1945 Japanese testing and attacks
In 1932
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
tested anthrax as a weapon by infecting prisoners held in
Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...
as a part of Japan's biological weapons program "
Operation Cherry Blossoms at Night".
During this program the Japanese used aircraft to attack at least 11 Chinese cities by spraying homes directly with anthrax.
1942 International biological weapons Programs
As a response to possible attacks from Germany, the United States, Great Britain and Canada started biological weapons programs. Experimentation of these bombs occurred in Mississippi, Utah and
Gruinard Island
Gruinard Island ( ;
gd, Eilean Ghruinneard) is a small, oval-shaped Scottish island approximately long by wide, located in Gruinard Bay, about halfway between Gairloch and Ullapool. At its closest point to the mainland, it is about offshore. ...
in Scotland.
Gruinard Island
In 1942 and 1943 n-bomb cluster munition, containing anthrax spores were detonated over
Gruinard Island
Gruinard Island ( ;
gd, Eilean Ghruinneard) is a small, oval-shaped Scottish island approximately long by wide, located in Gruinard Bay, about halfway between Gairloch and Ullapool. At its closest point to the mainland, it is about offshore. ...
, as a joint research program between the United States, Canada and Great Britain.
80 sheep were placed on the island prior to the dispersal of aerosol anthrax; all of them died.
More interest in Gruinard Island came in the early 1980s when a survey discovered that there was still anthrax contamination in the environment, showing the long term effects of anthrax use as a biological weapons.
In 1986 Great Britain decontaminated the island with a mixture of
formaldehyde
Formaldehyde ( , ) (systematic name methanal) is a naturally occurring organic compound with the formula and structure . The pure compound is a pungent, colourless gas that polymerises spontaneously into paraformaldehyde (refer to section F ...
and seawater, and was passed as safe by a group of scientists led by the secretary of the
Agricultural and Food Research Council
The Agricultural and Food Research Council (AFRC) was a British Research Council responsible for funding and managing scientific and technological developments in farming and horticulture.
History
The AFRC was formed in 1983 from its predecessor, ...
in 1988 after 40 sheep were raised on the island for several months without symptoms of anthrax infection.
1950 United States biological weapons program expansion
Programs were expanded during the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
in order to protect US troops against biological agents, where a program was added for the development of vaccines and other
treatments.
1979 Accidental outbreak in Sverdlovsk USSR
In April and May 1979 in the city of
Sverdlovsk (population of 1.2 million
), an anthrax outbreak was reported.
96 cases of anthrax infection were reported where 79 were gastrointestinal anthrax and 17 were cutaneous, of these cases 64 out of the 96 infected people died in a period of weeks.
Soviet reports in 1979 denied the manufacture of biological weapons and reported that the anthrax outbreak originated from livestock, but in 1992 it was confirmed by the president of Russia,
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin ( rus, Борис Николаевич Ельцин, p=bɐˈrʲis nʲɪkɐˈla(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈjelʲtsɨn, a=Ru-Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin.ogg; 1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician wh ...
, that the outbreak originated from a Soviet military microbiological facility within 4 kilometers of the city, and occurred from improper installation of air filters at the facility.
1993 Aum Shinrikyo unsuccessful attempt in Tokyo
1993 the
Aum Shinrikyo
, formerly , is a Japanese doomsday cult founded by Shoko Asahara in 1987. It carried out the deadly Tokyo subway sarin attack in 1995 and was found to have been responsible for the Matsumoto sarin attack the previous year.
The group says ...
cult released anthrax spores from the roof of an eight-story building in downtown Tokyo.
Upon investigation, the spores used were from the 'Sterne strain' of anthrax, which is an
attenuated bacterium that is used to vaccinate animals.
1995 Iraq biological weapons program
In 1995
UNSCOM
United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) was an inspection regime created by the United Nations to ensure Iraq's compliance with policies concerning Iraqi production and use of weapons of mass destruction after the Gulf War. Between 1991 and 19 ...
inspectors discovered that
Iraq had a biological warfare program, despite an agreement ending the
Gulf War
The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
in 1991, that all programs involving weapons of mass destruction are accounted for and ended.
In July 1995 documents were confirmed by defectors who ran Iraq's biological warfare program; that the biological weapons program produced a large variety of biological weapons, including anthrax, which was able to be delivered by missiles, bombs and aerosols. It was also discovered that there was an arsenal of these weapons in 1991.
2001 Anthrax letters
After the
attacks of September 11
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated Suicide attack, suicide List of terrorist incidents, terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, ...
on the United States, letters were delivered to two U.S. Senators' offices and several media agencies containing a powdered form of anthrax. The process of delivering these letters led to the postal facilities and buildings that they passed through being contaminated.
The powdered anthrax was able to disperse into the air without being detected and eventually inhaled.
43 people tested positive to anthrax exposure and 22 cases of anthrax illness were diagnosed, where 11 were inhalation anthrax and 11 were cutaneous anthrax. Five people from this group died.
See also
*
Smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...
*
Plague
Plague or The Plague may refer to:
Agriculture, fauna, and medicine
*Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis''
* An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural)
* A pandemic caused by such a disease
* A swarm of pe ...
*
Botulism
Botulism is a rare and potentially fatal illness caused by a toxin produced by the bacterium ''Clostridium botulinum''. The disease begins with weakness, blurred vision, feeling tired, and trouble speaking. This may then be followed by weakne ...
*
Viral hemorrhagic fever
Viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHFs) are a diverse group of animal and human illnesses in which fever and hemorrhage are caused by a viral infection. VHFs may be caused by five distinct families of RNA viruses: the families '' Filoviridae'', ''Flav ...
References
{{U.S. biological weapons
Anthrax
Bioterrorism