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Anthrax is spread by contact with the bacterium's spores, which often appear in infectious animal products. [10] Contact is by breathing or eating or through an area of broken skin. [10] It does not typically spread directly between people. [10] Risk factors include people who work with animals or animal products, and military personnel. [3]
The bacteria may live in the soil for decades, and result in outbreaks which usually occur after periods of drought followed by heavy rainfall. Anthrax can be transmitted between livestock ...
In September 2001, letters containing anthrax spores were mailed to several news media offices and two U.S. Senators, killing five people and infecting 17 others. Of those infected, 11 developed cutaneous anthrax, while 11 developed inhalation anthrax. 20 of the 22 infected worked at a site where contaminated mail was handled or received. [7]
The symptoms in anthrax depend on the type of infection and can take anywhere from 1 day to more than 2 months to appear. All types of anthrax have the potential, if untreated, to spread throughout the body and cause severe illness and even death. [24] Four forms of human anthrax disease are recognized based on their portal of entry.
Despite the World War I-era interest in ricin, as World War II erupted, the United States Army still maintained the position that biological weapons were, for the most part, impractical. [2] Other nations, notably France, Japan and the United Kingdom, thought otherwise and had begun their own biological weapons programs. [ 2 ]
Anthrax is a disease caused by Bacillus anthracis, a spore-forming, Gram positive, rod-shaped bacterium (Fig. 1).The lethality of the disease is caused by the bacterium's two principal virulence factors: (i) the polyglutamic acid capsule, which is anti-phagocytic, and (ii) the tripartite protein toxin, called anthrax toxin.
Anthrax spores are able to be dispersed via multiple methods and infect humans with ease. [4] The symptoms present as a common cold or flu, and may take weeks before appearing. [3] [6] The destructive effects of an anthrax attack on a large city may have the destructive capacity of a nuclear weapon. [4]
O'Connor's scab tests negative for anthrax; because O'Connor was taking Cipro to treat the presumed spider bite, Ryker has the CDC try a more advanced test which comes back positive. Ryker locates the letter and learns of anthrax exposures involving similar letters at the New York Post and CBS News, as well as the infant of an ABC News employee ...