1. Bioterrorism

Front 1

Bioterrorism

Back 1

Use of biological agents (microbes) to cause damage, death and or fear
-Effect is to cause mass hysteria and a frightened and confused population
-Potential targets = food and water supply and distribution systems

Front 2

What are the top four bioterrorist disease

Back 2

1) Bacillus anthracis
2) Smallpox
3) Yersinia pestis
4) Botulism toxin

Front 3

Describe bacillus anthracis

Back 3

-Gram positve spore forming rod
-Causes anthrax
-Spores are the infective form for humans and animals
-Tree forms of the disease caused by anthrax bacilli:
1) Cutaneous
2) Gastrointestinal
3) Inhalation
(Most deadly is inhalation)

Front 4

What is the ID50 of B. anthracis?

Back 4

Unknown
-But at least 2000 spores need to be inhaled in fine droplets
-To be inhaled into the lung, the spores must remain airborne, and in a fine suspension so that the spores bypass the defences of the upper airway

Front 5

What is cutaneous anthrax?

Back 5

-Least serious form of anthrax
-Results when spores enter cuts or wounds and germinate in the tissue
-Characterized by a black-centered lesion called an eschar
-Bacteria produce two toxins which result in formation of anthrax lesion
-Death rate in untreated cutaenous antrhax is less than 20 percent.
-Responds well to early antibiotic treatment

Front 6

What is inhalation anthrax?

Back 6

-Most serious form of idsease
-Spores inhaled into lungs and ingested by alveolar macrophages
-Macrophages carry the spores to lymph nodes and spores germinated into actively dividing bacteria in the lungs and lymph nodes and begin to produce the two toxins

Front 7

What are the symptoms of inhalation anthrax?

Back 7

-Early symptoms:
-Non specific and resemble the symptoms of influenza (headaches, muscle aches, malaise)
Secondary Stage
-Difficulty breathing
-Neurological problems
-Progress to death

Front 8

How do we treat inhalation anthrax?

Back 8

-Antibiotic treatment can be effective if antibiotics are administered before the secondary stage of the disease
-This is because anthrax is a toxin-mediated disease and killing the bacteria does not eliminate the toxins
-In the secondary stage of the disease, there are high levels of the anthrax toxin circulating the patient

Front 9

What is Gastroinestinal anthrax?

Back 9

It is a form of anthrax that results when food (raw or poorly cooked contaminated meat) contaiminated with B. anthracis spores is consumed
-Symptoms are vague

Front 10

What toxins do Bacillus antracis produce?

Back 10

1) Edema toxin
2) Lethal Toxin

Front 11

Edema toxin

Back 11

Results in inflammation and swelling seen in the infected site

Front 12

Lethal Toxin

Back 12

In cutaneous anthrax, lethal toxin is responsible for producing the necrotic black centered lesion.
-In inhalation anthrax, disseminated lethal toxin results in shock and death

Front 13

Is there a vaccine avaliable for anthrax?

Back 13

-Yes, but there is a limited supply of the vaccine and several immunizations are required to develop immunity to B. anthracis
-Actual effectiveness of vaccine to induce immunity is also uncertain

Front 14

What is weaponized anthrax?

Back 14

-Originally meant that bioloigcal agent could be encased in a missile and delivered to its target wihtout exposing the perpetrator
-Its current use has to come to mean that spores have been dried, mixed with some powder and ground to produce smaller spore coated particles

Front 15

B. anthracis is not that infectious to humans why is it still a preferred agent?

Back 15

-Spores are stable structures that can be stored in the dried form for years
-Initiat symptoms of inhalation anthrax are non specific and disease is difficult for doctors to diagnose
-Since treatment with anitbiotics in the secondary stage of inhalation anthrax is not always successful, some fatalities will result