Bioterrorism/Biological Warfare

Use of microorganisms and toxins as weapons

Biological Warfare Agents

• Microorganisms like virus, bacteria, fungi, protozoa or toxins produced by them
• Give rise to diseases in man, animals or plants, when deliberately dispersed in an area
• Can cause large-scale mortality, morbidity and can incapacitate a large number of
people in the shortest possible time and have adverse effects on human health
1. Anthrax
• Disease of humans and animals
• Caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis (gram -ve)
• Derives its name from the Greek word for coal “anthrakis” because it causes black coal
like skin lesions
• Human anthrax naturally occurs in three clinical forms
• Cutaneous anthrax: when spores come in contact with the skin and develop into black
lesions
• Gastrointestinal anthrax: occurs by the consumption of infected animal products and
undercooked/raw meat
• Respiratory anthrax: caused by the inhalation of spores through respiration
Thavaselvam et al., 2010
• Can be treated at earliest stages with penicillin (often delivered
intravenously), tetracycline, ciprofloxacin or doxycycline
2. Plague
• Infectious disease of animals and humans
• caused by the bacteria, Yersinia pestis (gram -ve)
• Millions of people in Europe, Asia and African continents died of
plague in the earlier centuries
• Humans get infected from the bite of rodent flea carrying the plague
bacteria or by handling an infected animal
•  Symptoms include, swelling of lymph nodes in groin and underarms
• Pneumonic plague: Bacteria reach the lungs and causes infection
3. Brucellosis
• Caused by bacteria of the genus Brucella (gram -ve)
• Known by several terms (including Malta fever, undulant fever,
Bang's disease, typhomalarial fever due to its resemblance to
malaria and typhoid fevers)
Thavaselvam et al., 2010
4. Q Fever
• Caused by Coxiella burnetii
• Comes from drinking water and cattle raw milk
• Characterized by Fever, cough, and chest pain
5. Variola (Smallpox)
• Also known as smallpox (Viral disease)
• Readily spread by person-to-person contact
• The Japanese Army explored weaponization of variola virus during
World War II
• Characterized by chills, fever, prostration, headache, backache, and
vomiting, as well as pustule formation Burrows et al., 1999

ELSI on Bioterrorism
• Innovative surveillance
• Detection and diagnostic tools and technology
• Scientific policy issues
• Bioterrorism-related legal needs and obstacles
 Genetically Modified Crops

• Golden rice: A variety of rice (Oryza sativa) produced

through genetic engineering to biosynthesize beta-carotene, a
precursor of Vitamin A
• Maize: Insect-resistant (Bt maize; modified with protein
from Bacillus thuringiensis)
• Canola: Herbicide-resistant (gene derived
bacterium Agrobacteriumstrain and Ochrobactrum anthropi)

("Wikipedia", 2021)
Benefits
• Pest resistance
• Herbicide tolerance
• Disease resistance
• Cold tolerance
• Drought tolerance/salinity tolerance
• Nutrition Pharmaceuticals
• Phytoremediation (Whitman et al., 2000)

Potential Risks of GM Foods

Health risks associated with GM foods
• Alteration in nutritional quality of foods
• Resistance to antibiotics
• Potential toxicity (Zhang, C. et al., 2016)
• Potential allergenicity from GM foods

Environmental concerns

• Unintentional gene transfer to wild plants

• Possible creation of new viruses and toxins

(Zhang, C. et al., 2016)

Threat to crop genetic diversity

Religious, cultural, and ethical concerns

(Uzogara et al., 2000)

References
• Thavaselvam, D., & Vijayaraghavan, R. (2010). Biological warfare
agents. Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences, 2(3), 179.
• Burrows, W. D., & Renner, S. E. (1999). Biological warfare agents as
threats to potable water. Environmental Health Perspectives, 107(12),
975-984.
• https://www.nap.edu/cart/download.cgi?record_id=10290
• Whitman, D. B. (2000). Genetically modified foods: harmful or
helpful?. CSA Discovery guides, 1-13.
• Zhang, C., Wohlhueter, R., & Zhang, H. (2016). Genetically modified
foods: A critical review of their promise and problems. Food Science and
Human Wellness, 5(3), 116-123.