Bioterrorism

The Threat of Bioterrorism

Bacteria , viruses , and prions can create chaos and international disruptions . When used as biological agents of terrorism these microbial agents of terrorism can kill people in thousands or hundreds of thousands . The threat of biological terrorism is real . In scenarios of conventional terrorist attacks , the level of emergency response by the local and federal authorities can significantly alleviate the brunt of the attack . However , in the case of bioterrorism , the level of emergency response would not only play a very crucial palliative role but could mean the

difference between life and death . If preparedness is adequate the bioterrorist attack could be rendered ineffective and inconsequential even if it had been a major one to begin with . On the other hand , if the level of preparedness is meager or absent , a relatively minor attack could escalate into a terrible national and international crisis

Bioterrorism is the deliberate release of a biological disease agent for the purpose of killing or harming people . In a more comprehensive sense bioterrorism can be defined as the intentional release , or threatened release , of disease-producing living organisms or biologically active substances derived from living organisms , for the purpose of causing death , illness , incapacity , economic damage , or fear . Such biological agents of terrorism are considered deadly weapons of mass destruction (Fraser , Fisher 2

There are hundreds of potential biological weapons , including bacteria viruses , genetically-altered or -enhanced infectious agents , vaccine and /or multidrug-resistant organism , and toxins produced by organisms some of which behave more like chemical than biological weapons . These weapons can be used for inciting panic and fear , paralyzing a nation overwhelming medical services , causing severe economic damage , causing violent illness and death , and gaining a military advantage . There are two central facts that need to be considered in the context of biological weapons a ) many biological weapons are surprisingly inexpensive and easy to produce and b ) the contagious biological agents could be wholly disproportionate with the original scale of attack . Although the most sophisticated and effective versions of these deadly microbial agents , the ones that could cause the greatest damage , require considerable equipment and specialized scientific expertise , primitive versions can be produced in a small unobtrusive area , with minimal equipment and limited training Frightening as this simple scenario may be , it has to be considered in association with another gravely threatening historical reality

The former Soviet Union 's Germ Warfare Program developed many highly specialized biological weapons . The Soviet Union is known to have produced highly sophisticated anthrax weapons (Farb , Gordon 44 Another Soviet biological weapon consists of a yersinia pseudotuberculosis bacterium that produces an initial , seemingly ordinary febrile illness , followed by a severe progressive demyelinating neuropathy that leaves its victims completely paralyzed . Other unusual and dangerous weapons developed by the Russian program include hybrid (chimera ) viruses that might simultaneously produce both smallpox and Ebola bacterial proviruses that produce an initial case of plague , then release Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus when exposed to antibiotics a prion weapon that produces a mad cow disease-like...