The document discusses the characteristics and historical use of biological weapons, emphasizing their indiscriminate nature and potential for widespread devastation, which has led to international agreements like the Biological Weapons Convention prohibiting their development and use. It categorizes biological agents by type (bacteria, viruses, fungi, etc.) and prioritizes them based on their potential impact on public health. The document concludes with the need for preparedness and public education to prevent biological weapon attacks.

1. MAJOR AGENTS AND THEIR
CHARACTERISTICS WHICH HAS BEEN USED
IN THE PAST AND THOSE WHICH CAN BE
USED IN FUTURE AS BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS
BY :
DR. CHANDRANI GOSWAMI
2015-VMK-72

2. INTRODUCTION
■ Biological weapon, also called germ weapon
■ “Any of a number of disease-producing agents such
as bacteria, viruses, rickettsia, fungi, toxins, or other biological
agents that may be utilized as weapons against humans, animals,
or plants”.
■ Most countries have agreed to ban the entire class :
 Indiscriminate nature,
 Potential for starting widespread pandemics,
 Difficulty of controlling disease effects, and
 Simple fear that they inspire—most countries have agreed to ban
the entire class

3. Biological Weapons
Convention (BWC)
■ As of 2013, a total of 180 states
and Taiwan had signed
■ Under the terms of the BWC,
member states are prohibited
from using biological weapons in
warfare and from :
 Developing,
 Testing,
 Producing,
 Stockpiling, or
 Deploying them Source: Biological Weapons Convention
Website

4. BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS IN
HISTORY■ 12th Century – Romans, Greeks, Persians; Polluted drinking water
with decaying animals.
■ 14th Century – Ukraine city of Kaffa; Tartar forces catapulted bodies
of plague victims.
■ 18th Century – British Troops, North America; Blankets of smallpox
victims were given to Native Americans.

5. RECENT HISTORY
■ 1973 - Biopreparation sites, Russia; 52 sites; 30,000 people
affected - Engineered agents and delivery systems - 30 tons of
Anthrax spores
■ 1979 -Sverdlovsk, USSR; Accidental release of anthrax spores - 75
deaths
■ 2001- USA; 22 cases of Anthrax (5 deaths)
Source: CDC

6. BIOLOGICAL WARFARE AGENTS
■ Biological weapons can be derived from:
 Microorganisms
 Biologically Derived Bioactive Substances (BDBS)
 Artificially Designed Biological-Mimicking Substances
■ A pathogen can be obtained from three major ways :
 Its natural environment
 Microbiology laboratory or bank (Eg. American Type Culture
Collection ,ATCC)
 A Creating them

7. CHARACTERISTICS OF
BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS
■ The agent selected should be lethal or incapacitating to man and
animals or result in destruction or reduction of crops.
■ It should be economically producible in adequate quantities from
available materials.
■ It should maintain its virulence or infectivity during production,
storage, and transportation.
■ It should be easily and efficiently disseminated.
■ It should be an agent for which there is no widespread natural or
acquired immunity.
■ Readily grown and produced in large quantities.

8. 5 DIFFERENT CATEGORIES
■ Bacteria—single-cell organisms that cause diseases such as
Bacillus anthracis (Anthrax), Yersinia pestis (Plague), Francisella
tularensis (Tularemia), Brucella spp. (Brucellosis)
■ Rickettsiae—microorganisms that resemble bacteria but differ
in that they are intracellular parasites that reproduce inside
cells. Eg. Typhus and Coxiella burnetii (Q Fever)

9. ■ Viruses—intracellular parasites, about 1/100 the size of
bacteria, that can be weaponized to cause diseases such
as Variola virus (Smallpox), Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis
Virus (VEE)
■ Fungi—pathogens that can be weaponized for use against
crops to cause such diseases as rice blast, cereal rust,
wheat smut, and potato blight.
■ Toxins—poisons that can be weaponized after extraction
from snakes, insects, spiders, marine organisms, plants,
bacteria, fungi, and animals. Eg. Ricin, Botulinum Toxins,
Mycotoxins.

10. CDC Biological Classification

11. Category A
■ High-priority agents include organisms
or toxins
■ Easily spread or transmitted
■ High death rates
■ Potential for major public health
impact
■ Cause public panic and social
disruption
■ Require special action for public
health preparedness.
■ Includes eg. Bacillus anthracis
(anthrax); Yersinia pestis (plague);
Clostridium botulinum toxin
(botulism); Francisella tularensis
(tularemia) etc.
■ Most of the Category A agents are
considered especially dangerous due
to the potential for airborne
Image: Plague lesion
Image: Tularemia lesion

12. Category B
■ These agents are the second
highest priority
■ Moderately easy to spread
■ Result in moderate illness rates
and low death rates
■ Includes eg. Coxiella burnetti(Q
fever); Brucella species
(brucellosis); Burkholderia mallei
(glanders); Rickettsia prowazekii
(Typhus fever); Ricinus communis
(ricintoxin from castor beans); etc
Image: Ricinus communis,
castor oil plant

13. Category C
■ Third highest priority agents include emerging pathogens that
could be engineered for mass spread in the future because:
■ They are easily available
■ They are easily produced and spread
■ They have potential for high morbidity and mortality rates and
major health impact
■ Includes eg. nipahvirus, hantaviruses, tick borne hemorrhagic
fever viruses, tick borne encephalitis viruses, yellow fever, and
multidrug-resistant tuberculosis

14. ZIKA VIRUS
■ The UN's global health agency
declared the Zika epidemic a
global health emergency in
February 2016.
■ Researchers warned that at
least 2.6 billion people, over a
third of the global population,
live in parts of Africa, Asia and
the Pacific
■ 1.2 billion at risk in India alone
Source : WHO, 2016

15. PREVENTION
■ Development of :
 Rapid detection and
 Public education and awareness campaign
 A high index of suspicion must be maintained, in cases with
what are often relatively nonspecific symptoms
 Control : Initiation of immediate therapy, supportive care
provides the best chance for survival from these devastating
infections.

16. CONCLUSION
■ Biological weapons recently attracted the attention and the
resources everywhere.
■ The terrorist activities will continue to involve bombs and
firearms, also include weapons of mass destruction,
including biological agents.
■ Weapons Convention (BWC) prohibits the acquisition of
biological materials for hostile purpose and armed conflict.
■ Emergency services must build and maintain their ability
to manage large scale biological weapon attacks
■ Continued education, training and forethought.