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Addresses concerns surrounding the construction of biofacilities at the nuclear facilities Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California and Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. Agencies involved in the biodefense proposals; Global consequences of the biowar bid of the Energy Department; Description of the facilities. INSETS: The case against Energy;Ensuring their future.

Weapons of mass destruction- chemical, nuclear and biological- is a horrifying term .We all know about the horrors of nuclear attack at Nagasaki and Hiroshima and khurdish and Iranian casualties of Iraqi chemical attacks. The third weapon of mass destruction-biological weapon-is being used since Middle Ages when soldiers used dead smallpox victims to infect their enemies or demoralize them.The attraction of biological weapon in biowarfare and bioterrorism is because of easy access to a wide range of pathogenic biological agents, their low production cost, difficult detection by routine security system and easy transportation from one place to another.In 1972,the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention was signed bymore than 140 countries which called for termination of all offensive biological weapons research and development and destruction of existing biological weapons stocks. The information provided in this paper can be used to improve detection assays and assist other agencies in the development of effective preventive and therapeutic measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The years following the 9/11/2001 terrorists attacks saw a marked increase in community and hospital emergency preparedness, from communications across community networks, development of policies and procedures, to attainment and training in the use of biological warfare resources. Regular drills ensured emergency and health care personnel were trained and prepared to address the next large-scale crisis, especially from terrorist and bioterrorist attacks. This chapter looks at some of the more familiar global health issues over the past two decades and the lessons learned from hospital responses to inform hospital management in preparation for future incidents., Search Methods: This study is a narrative review of the literature related to lessons learned from four major events in the time period from 2002 to 2023 - SARS, MERS, Ebola, and COVID-19., Search Results: The initial search yielded 25,913 articles; 57 articles were selected for inclusion in the study., Discussion and Conclusions: Comparison of key issues and lessons learned among the four major events described in this article - SARS, MERS, Ebola, and COVID-19 - highlight that several lessons are "relearned" with each event. Other key issues, such as supply shortages, staffing availability, and hospital capacity to simultaneously provide care to noninfectious patients came to the forefront during the COVID-19 pandemic. A primary, ongoing concern for hospitals is how to maintain their preparedness given competing priorities, resources, and staff time. This concern remains post-COVID-19., (Copyright © 2024 Jennifer L. Hefner, Dori A. Cross and Patrick D. Shay. Published under exclusive licence by Emerald Publishing Limited.)

To investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the strategic decisionmaking of leaders with respect to biological weapons, this study employed a prospective simulation technique called Asynchronous Strategic Dynamics Red Teaming. Using an immersive, multimedia simulation conducted remotely and asynchronously, the effort engaged 240 carefully selected and curated expert participants in either biological weapons or the countries of interest (as well as 60 naïve participants). Across our sample of 30 countries, simulated interest in pursuing some type of biological weapons program (defensive or offensive) remained low to moderate. While such interest increased after the simulated onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was limited overall, with only a handful of states showing salient increases in offensive biological weapon interest. When directly referencing why their countries might have changed their post-COVID-19 interest in biological weapons, the most commonly cited reasons were: (1) COVID-19 demonstrated the power of biological weapons to disrupt societies and cause large-scale economic harm, and (2) the pandemic revealed either the state's own or its rivals' vulnerability to diseases like COVID-19, as well as an inability to efficiently respond and contain such diseases. In sum, despite a global pandemic with massive consequences, the simulation revealed that most states are not likely to dramatically change their strategic posture regarding pursuit of offensive biological weapons.

There has been much debate in recent years about the role of the East German Ministry for State Security (Stasi) in the disinformation campaign launched in the early 1980s by the Soviet State Security Committee (KGB) regarding the origin and nature of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). The KGB's operation, codenamed "Denver" by the Stasi (not "Infektion," as many online sources now erroneously assert), claimed that AIDS was deliberately devised by U.S. biological warfare specialists for the U.S. government to spread in minority communities in the United States. Based on the available evidence, the Stasi's role in the AIDS disinformation campaign was limited in 1985–1986 to (1) keeping watch over Soviet-East German scientist Jakob Segal, who propagated a variant of the KGB's thesis; (2) helping to arrange for the publication and distribution of a brochure with Segal's thesis at the Non-Aligned Movement summit in Harare in 1986; and (3) facilitating Segal's interviews with certain journalists. Just as important for the ongoing formulation and spread of the KGB's AIDS disinformation was a cycle of misinformation and disinformation that arose between U.S.-based conspiracy theorists—especially Lyndon LaRouche and his followers—and authors and publications espousing Moscow's preferred theses regarding AIDS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Innate immunity is regulated by phagocytic cells and is critical for host control of bacterial infection. In many bacteria, the type VI secretion system (T6SS) can affect bacterial virulence in certain environments, but little is known about the mechanisms underlying T6SS regulation of innate immune responses during infection in vivo. Here, we developed an infection model by microinjecting bacteria into the tail vein muscle of 3-day-post-fertilized zebrafish larvae, and found that both macrophages and neutrophils are essential for bacterial clearance. Further study revealed that EvpP plays a critical role in promoting the pathogenesis of Edwardsiella piscicida (E. piscicida) via inhibiting the phosphorylation of Jnk signaling to reduce the expression of chemokine (CXC motif) ligand 8 (cxcl8a), matrix metallopeptidase 13 (mmp13) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) in vivo. Subsequently, by utilizing Tg (mpo:eGFP +/+) zebrafish larvae for E. piscicida infection, we found that the EvpP-inhibited Jnk-caspy (caspase-1 homolog) inflammasome signaling axis significantly suppressed the recruitment of neutrophils to infection sites, and the caspy- or IL-1β -morpholino (MO) knockdown larvae were more susceptible to infection and failed to restrict bacterial colonization in vivo. taken together, this interaction improves our understanding about the complex and contextual role of a bacterial T6SS effector in modulating the action of neutrophils during infection, and offers new insights into the warfare between bacterial weapons and host immunological surveillance. • The neutrophil is critical for anti- E. piscicida infection in zebrafish larvae infection model. • E. piscicida T6SS effector EvpP inhibits the expression of cxcl8a, mmp13 and IL-1β in vivo. • EvpP inhibits Jnk-caspy inflammasome signaling cascades during E. piscicida infection. • EvpP inhibits the neutrophils recruitment during E. piscicida infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bacillus anthracis and Yersinia pestis are zoonotic bacteria capable of causing severe and sometimes fatal infections in animals and humans. Although considered as diseases of antiquity in industrialized countries due to animal and public health improvements, they remain endemic in vast regions of the world disproportionally affecting the poor. These pathogens also remain a serious threat if deployed in biological warfare. A single vaccine capable of stimulating rapid protection against both pathogens would be an extremely advantageous public health tool. We produced multiple-antigen fusion proteins (MaF1 and MaF2) containing protective regions from B. anthracis protective antigen (PA) and lethal factor (LF), and from Y. pestis V antigen (LcrV) and fraction 1 (F1) capsule. The MaF2 sequence was also expressed from a plasmid construct (pDNA-MaF2). Immunogenicity and protective efficacy were investigated in mice following homologous and heterologous prime-boost immunization. Antibody responses were determined by ELISA and anthrax toxin neutralization assay. Vaccine efficacy was determined against lethal challenge with either anthrax toxin or Y. pestis. Both constructs elicited LcrV and LF-specific serum IgG, and MaF2 elicited toxin-neutralizing antibodies. Immunizations with MaF2 conferred 100% and 88% protection against Y. pestis and anthrax toxin, respectively. In contrast, pDNA-MaF2 conferred only 63% protection against Y. pestis and no protection against anthrax toxin challenge. pDNA-MaF2-prime MaF2-boost induced 75% protection against Y. pestis and 25% protection against anthrax toxin. Protection was increased by the molecular adjuvant CARDif. In conclusion, MaF2 is a promising multi-antigen vaccine candidate against anthrax and plague that warrants further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Use of biological warfare agents is an emerging threat to mankind. In 21st century awareness and threat regarding these biological warfare agents is increasing.These agents are used in war or for terrorist attack. Various toxins and microorganisms are used as biowarfare agents to cause harm to humans, animals and plants. They are classified under various categories. They can be used in various forms as sprays, as explosive or food or water contamination. Biowarfare agents are difficult to identify and can be easily transported and delivered which makes them more favorable tool for destruction for terrorist operations or to gain political advantage. To detect such agents, the diseases associated with them should be recognized using various techniques. Protective measures should be taken according to the symptoms of the diseases related and their contagious nature. This review on the biological warfare agents will provide information on the biowarfare agents, their mode of transmission and also the detection systems available to detect them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the issues over the use of biological warfare (BW) during the Korean War. Topics include the alleged use by the U.S. of germs and insects as combat weapons, the investigation by Murray Sanders on Japanese military BW, the BW book "Peace or Pestilence," by Theodore Rosebury, and the journalists who probed BW use like Wilfred Burchett, Alan Winnington, and Tibor Merey.

Biological threats pose significant risks to national and international security. A deliberate release of biological agents whether by terrorist groups or individual perpetrators constitutes an immediate threat to the life and health of the people. Many biological agents can spread infectious diseases or cause illness in humans. In the 21st century, infectious diseases are the second leading cause of death worldwide. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic highlights the unsettled problems in the arena of biosecurity and health security. Moreover, the rapid development of biotechnology leads to an increased threat of biological weapons. Therefore, this article articulates how a state can effectively protect the health and life of its citizens from these threats. The main objective of this paper is to encapsulate the perilous weaknesses in existing preparedness for countering biological risks. Similarly, it explores the policies and capabilities of Pakistan for tackling the growing biological threats. Finally, this paper explores the severe gaps in policy for countering biological risks, particularly in Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brucella melitensis, mainly responsible for human brucellosis, is considered as biological warfare. Being intracellular in nature Brucella induces oxidative stress due to bacterial invasion in organs like spleen and lymph nodes. The present study was aimed to evaluate the specific oxidative stress responses in erythrocytes and tissues induced by intranasal inoculation of killed Brucella whole cell protein antigen coupled with sodium acrylate nanoparticle adjuvant. Glutathione mediated nonenzymic antioxidant defense system and catalase have been observed to play a critical role in intracellular antioxidant defenses in vaccinated animals and also in maintaining an excellent milieu to induce an active immune potential. The antioxidant defenses in erythrocytes, liver, kidneys, lungs and spleen of vaccinated mice also maintained excellent redox homeostasis required for quality and effective protection without inflammatory pathophysiology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since its first appearance in the war scenarios, the toxic agents of mass destruction have provoked a generalized rejection for its insidious aspects, long-term consequences and the pernicious effects on the civilian population. Anthrax, smallpox, botulism, sarin gas, mustard gas are compounds baptized as the "atomic bomb of the poor", since they can be spread with the most complex technology but also by the most rudimentary. Almost all bacteriological weapons are destined to be sent by air; but they can also be active by other means, for example, by placing an aerosol can in the truck of a taxi in a city. Other worrisome agents, from the point of view of biological warfare (BW), are cholera, equine encephalitis and multidrug-resistant bacteria. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) the list of agents involved in biological warfare is very extensive, so in this work we will only mention; briefly, to some of them as: smallpox, botulism, plague or black death, tularemia, Q fever, psittacosis, hemorrhagic fever by filovirus subtypes Ebola-Sudan and Ebola-Zaire and the hantavirus. It's considered essential to emphasize the knowledge and perception of the medical group and the general public, about the agents involved in BW and their serious and real possibilities of causing harm. Through reminders and education, clinicians can increase their capacity to serve the patient individually and also protect public health. The most effective prevention measure is based on the creation and preservation of strong cultural norms at the individual, social and political level that prohibit the development and use of such biological weapons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In July 2017, fever and sepsis developed in 3 recipients of solid organs (1 heart and 2 kidneys) from a common donor in the United States; 1 of the kidney recipients died. Tularemia was suspected only after blood cultures from the surviving kidney recipient grew Francisella species. The organ donor, a middle-aged man from the southwestern United States, had been hospitalized for acute alcohol withdrawal syndrome, pneumonia, and multiorgan failure. F. tularensis subsp. tularensis (clade A2) was cultured from archived spleen tissue from the donor and blood from both kidney recipients. Whole-genome multilocus sequence typing indicated that the isolated strains were indistinguishable. The heart recipient remained seronegative with negative blood cultures but had been receiving antimicrobial drugs for a medical device infection before transplant. Two lagomorph carcasses collected near the donor's residence were positive by PCR for F. tularensis subsp. tularensis (clade A2). This investigation documents F. tularensis transmission by solid organ transplantation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In July 2017, fever and sepsis developed in 3 recipients of solid organs (1 heart and 2 kidneys) from a common donor in the United States; 1 of the kidney recipients died. Tularemia was suspected only after blood cultures from the surviving kidney recipient grew Francisella species. The organ donor, a middle-aged man from the southwestern United States, had been hospitalized for acute alcohol withdrawal syndrome, pneumonia, and multiorgan failure. F. tularensis subsp. tularensis (clade A2) was cultured from archived spleen tissue from the donor and blood from both kidney recipients. Whole-genome multilocus sequence typing indicated that the isolated strains were indistinguishable. The heart recipient remained seronegative with negative blood cultures but had been receiving antimicrobial drugs for a medical device infection before transplant. Two lagomorph carcasses collected near the donor's residence were positive by PCR for F. tularensis subsp. tularensis (clade A2). This investigation documents F. tularensis transmission by solid organ transplantation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background. Disinformation, now best known generically as "fake news," is an old and protean weapon. Prominent in the 1980s was AIDS disinformation, including the HIV-from-Fort-Detrick myth, for whose propagation some figures ultimately admitted blame while others shamelessly claimed credit. In 2013 we reported a comprehensive analysis of this myth, finding leading roles for the Soviet Union's state security service, the KGB, and for biologist and independent conspiracy theorist Jakob Segal but not for East Germany's state security service, the Stasi. We found Stasi involvement had been much less extensive and much less successful than two former Stasi officers had begun claiming following German reunification. In 2014 two historians crediting the two former Stasi officers coauthored a monograph challenging our analysis and portraying the Stasi as having directed Segal, or at least as having used him as a "conscious or unconscious multiplier," and as having successfully assisted a Soviet bloc AIDS-disinformation conspiracy that they soon inherited and thenceforth led. In 2017 a German appellate court found our 2013 analysis persuasive in a defamation suit brought by a filmmaker whose work the 2014 monograph had depicted as co-funded by the Stasi. Question and methods. Were our critics right about the Stasi? We asked and answered ten subsidiary questions bearing upon our critics' arguments, reassessing our own prior work and probing additional sources including archives of East Germany's Partei- und Staatsführung [party-and-state leadership] and the recollections of living witnesses. Findings. Jakob Segal transformed and transmitted the myth without direction from the KGB or the Stasi or any element of East Germany's party-and-state leadership. The Stasi had trouble even tracking Segal's activities, which some officers feared would disadvantage East Germany scientifically, economically, and politically. Three officers in one Stasi section did show interest in myth propagation, but their efforts were late, limited, inept, and inconsequential. Conclusion. The HIV-from-Fort-Detrick myth, most effectively promoted by Jakob Segal acting independently of any state's security service, was not, contrary to claims, a Stasi success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During World War II, members of the Imperial Japanese Army biological warfare Unit 731 conducted a live test deployment of plague-infected fleas in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, China. The deployment triggered an outbreak involving 165 cases in downtown Ningbo, 112 of which were fatal (68% case fatality rate).  Despite lack of access to effective medical countermeasures, the Ningbo community exhibited a high degree of social cohesion and resilience in the context of effective public health response. These findings support the value of community preparedness and strong public health infrastructure to mitigate the impact of biological weapons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From 1932 to 1945, Imperial Japan secretly developed the largest state biological warfare (BW) programme of its time, which was unique in its use of biological weapons in warfare and in its inhumane experiments on captive Chinese civilians. After Japan's surrender, US military intelligence teams searched for any evidence of BW activities, whilst sharing all it could find with its close partner, the UK. Despite the UK offering little intelligence material in return, it secured detailed US intelligence reports on Japanese BW war crimes, and colluded with the United States to keep these Japanese war crimes a secret. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bacillus anthracis marker (dipicolinic acid, DPA) is a biological warfare agent. The excessive amounts of the compound would lead to serious problems in human health. It is essential to develop a straightforward and rapid detection technology of DPA. For this reason, an optical sensing platform was established on a robust alginate film. Firstly, green emission CQDs were synthesized via a one-step microwave carbonization method based on citric acid and urea. In the next step, europium ions were employed to chelate the carboxyl groups of CQDs and sodium alginate was selected to assemble the green fluorescent film (CQDs-Eu film). In the presence of DPA, the emission peaks evolved from green to red region. The ratio of I615/I554 linearly increased with the addition of DPA in the range of 1-45 µM with a detection limit as low as 0.17 µM. This CQDs-Eu film-based sensing nanostructure showed its potential applications in the fields of biology and food analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The US government initiated a Defense Counterproliferation Initiative to address the concern that, in the post-Cold War years, the proliferation of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons would be widespread and create a significant challenge to the US military's combat operations. In particular, non-nuclear states might use chemical or biological warfare agents against US forces with the belief that nuclear weapons would not be used against them in retaliation. Following the events of September 11, 2001, defense strategy and policy shifted to a wider view of the threat of adversarial use of "weapons of mass destruction" (WMD) and the term "counterproliferation" was replaced by "combating" or "countering WMD." Over time, the Defense Department increasingly moved away from counterproliferation principles with the detrimental effect of losing capabilities that US forces still need for contemporary adversaries. This shift has been aggravated by other US government agencies' use of "counterproliferation" in lieu of what would have been termed "nonproliferation" activities in the 1990s. The loss of clarity within the US government on these terms has led to the inability to focus the "whole of government" on this significant national security challenge. To alleviate this challenge, the US government needs a top-down initiative to refocus policy on the distinctly different aspects of WMD with respect to military combat operations, combating terrorism, and homeland security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global terrorism is a rapidly growing threat to world security, and increases the risk of bioterrorism. In this Review, we discuss the potential threat of bioterrorism, agents that could be exploited, and recent developments in technologies and policy for detecting and controlling epidemics that have been initiated intentionally. The local and international response to infectious disease epidemics, such as the severe acute respiratory syndrome and west African Ebola virus epidemic, revealed serious shortcomings which bioterrorists might exploit when intentionally initiating an epidemic. Development of new vaccines and antimicrobial therapies remains a priority, including the need to expedite clinical trials using new methodologies. Better means to protect health-care workers operating in dangerous environments are also needed, particularly in areas with poor infrastructure. New and improved approaches should be developed for surveillance, early detection, response, effective isolation of patients, control of the movement of potentially infected people, and risk communication. Access to dangerous pathogens should be appropriately regulated, without reducing progress in the development of countermeasures. We conclude that preparedness for intentional outbreaks has the important added value of strengthening preparedness for natural epidemics, and vice versa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the chemical-warfare tests on humans which suggested that a chemical warfare would have been effective in the Pacific in World War II. Publicity over the lawsuit by former Australian commando Tom Mitchell, who was injured in a chemical-warfare test, filed in 1981, along with revelations made in a documentary film broadcast in Australia in 1989, has prompted other Australian survivors of chemical-warfare tests to ask the Australian Department of Veterans Affairs for disability benefits. Veterans of chemical-warfare tests are also breaking their silence in the U.S. and Canada. The veterans' demands have forced their respective governments to acknowledge that the tests indeed took place and to furnish information that allows a fairly complete picture of the testing program to take shape. Britain, Canada, and Australia had signed the Geneva Protocol of 1925, pledging not to initiate chemical warfare, and U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt had publicly made similar pledges in 1942 and 1943. But under the terms of the Protocol, the Allies could have initiated chemical warfare in the Pacific, arguing that it was in retaliation for the Japanese use of chemical weapons against the Chinese. In 1980, the U.S. Department of the Army asked the National Academy of Sciences to study the long-term effects of exposure to chemical-warfare agents for 6720 soldiers who participated in experiments at Edgewood Arsenal from 1955 to 1975. The resulting report mentions a statistical correlation between chronic mustard-gas exposure and cancer, but it was unable to establish correlations between mustard-gas exposure and other ailments because the number of people was so small. The researchers did not have access to data on the soldiers who were exposed to the substance during World War II. INSETS: A vast, secret network;The chemicals.;Grading the harm done..

This article observes that the review conference presents an opportunity to close an important loophole in the 1972 Biological Weapons Convention. This month in Geneva the Biological Weapons Convention is facing its third review. One reason for the ban's apparent success in the 1970s was the absence of any obvious military interest in biological war-fare. Whether these technologies make any real difference to the military utility of biological weapons is still contested, but they clearly have stimulated military interest. And given Iraq's blatant violation of the Geneva Protocol in the 1980s, by using chemical weapons against its adversaries, it is easy to believe that Iraq would violate the Biological Weapons Convention. INSET: What Congress can do..

Report on the production of poison gas weapons by the Japanese Imperial Army on the top-secret tiny island of Okunoshima during World War II. Development of poison gas weapons; Key figures; Hazards; Experiments; Types of gases; Collected examples of use; Sufferers. INSET: Poison gases; Ghostly experiments.;Use of poison gas in China....

Reports on steps taken to correct shortcomings in the 1972 Biological Weapons Convention at an international meeting held in September 1986 in Geneva, Switzerland. Politically binding agreement on the exchange of information on high-containment research facilities and on unusual disease outbreaks; Sweeping prohibitions of the convention; Issue of the creation of warfare agents by genetic engineering.

The article focuses on the need for an international commitment toward biological weapons disarmament in order to prevent the use of bioengineering technology for military purposes. Recombinant DNA technology has been responsible for the development of harmful biological agents. There is a strong possibility that these agents might be used for military applications. The use of the biological agents was prohibited under the Biological Weapons Convention of 1972. Nations including the United States and the Soviet Union had signed this treaty.

The article questions the validity of the verification of biological arms control treaties following the epidemic of anthrax in Sverdlovsk, Russia, the suspected biological warfare facility of the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union tried to conceal the details about the spread of anthrax, but the Western communications media published the details of how large number of people contracted fatal systemic anthrax. The article also focuses on the U.S. budget for chemical and biological weapons and defenses which kept rising in during 1980s.

The article discusses the ability of the military power in initiating a possible nuclear war between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. A full line of nuclear explosives including multi-warheaded intercontinental missiles are accessed by the military superpowers. There can be no assurance that a nuclear conflict between two nations will not grow into a nuclear war if the nations have readily available stockpiles of nuclear weapons. The possible effects of a continued spiral of arms production need to be considered by the U.S. Earlier, people were prepared to live with tragedies such as World War I and II. But, now the military power could no more deter war. The present military philosophy of both the nations is to fight rather than lose a nuclear war that might prove dangerous.

The article presents information on Japan's use of American soldiers as guinea pigs for developing biological weapons during the Pacific War. Secret documents, secured under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act, reveal that Japan used biological warfare against China and the Soviet Union during the Pacific War. The U.S. government tried to cover-up the whole incident to secure exclusive possession of Japan's expertise in using germs as lethal weapons. It granted immunity from war crimes prosecution to the Japanese participants in return for their laboratory records. Japan had gained this undisputed lead primarily because its scientists used humans as guinea pigs, many of whom were American soldiers captured during the early part of the war.