ENCYCLOPEDIA OF Espionage, Intelligence, and Security Volume ...

Anthrax Vaccinebioweapons program managed to produce 8,500 liters ofconcentrated anthrax.Despite the technical challenges, the production ofanthrax spores in quantities great enough to cause a hugeloss of life is not beyond the capability of a small group ofequipped and funded terrorists. The small size and nondescriptnature of a bioweapons facility could make detectionof such a lab very difficult. Accordingly, the terroristpotential of anthrax will remain a threat for the foreseeablefuture.❚ FURTHER READING:BOOKS:Heyman, D. A., J. Achterberg, and J. Laszlo. Lessons fromthe Anthrax Attacks: Implications for U.S. BioterrorismPreparedness: A Report on a National Forum onBiodefense.Washington, DC: Center for Strategic andInternational Studies. 2002.Inglesby, Thomas V. “Bioterrorist Threats: What the InfectiousDisease Community Should Know about Anthraxand Plague”, in: Emerging Infections 5 Washington, DC:American Society for Microbiology Press, 2001.Koehler, T. M. Anthrax. Berlin: Springer Verlag, 2002.ELECTRONIC:University of California at Los Angeles. ”Anthrax as aWeapon.“ College of Letters and Science. February,2002. (29 December2002).SEE ALSOAnthrax VaccineBacterial BiologyBiological WarfareBioterrorism, Protective Measures❚ BRIAN HOYLEAnthrax VaccineAnthrax is an infection that is caused by the bacteriumBacillus anthracis.Several different types of anthrax infection can becaused by the bacterium. Entry of bacteria through a skinwound can produce a skin infection known as cutaneousanthrax. Microorganisms can also contaminate food orwater. Ingestion of the contaminated food or water producesgastrointestinal anthrax. The most serious type ofanthrax results from the inhalation of the spore form of thebacterium. Inhalation anthrax has a high mortality rate.In the 1990s, United States military personnel in thePersian Gulf region faced the possibility of retaliatorystrikes using biological weapons, in particular anthrax.Encyclopedia of Espionage, Intelligence, and SecurityDomestically, the use of Bacillus anthracis spores by terroristsis a reality. Although not directly related by evidenceto the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on theWorld Trade Center and Pentagon in the United States,letters containing powdered anthrax bacteria and sporeswere sent to a number of politicians, media personalities,and U.S. citizens. Even more ominously, the terroristsresponsible for the September 11 attacks had attemptedto procure a small crop dusting aircraft. Such an aircraftcould potentially disperse several hundred kilograms ofanthrax spores upwind of a major urban center in only afew hours. One scenario developed by scientists for Washington,D.C. indicated that up to three million people couldbe sickened or killed by such an attack.For some years, military personnel and others at riskfor anthrax exposure (i.e., researchers and those handlinganimals) have received an anthrax vaccine. For example,U.S. military personnel were vaccinated in 1990, duringthe Gulf War, and again prior to another response in thatregion in 1998.The increasing risk and incidence of anthrax exposure,however, have made the development of differentand safer anthrax vaccines a priority. The use of anthraxagainst civilians, and the ominous scenarios of anthraxspores released in the ventilation systems of office buildingsand over large urban centers, have created the possibilitythat millions of people would potentially requirevaccination. As well, large stockpiles of anthrax vaccine(as well as antibiotics) would be required, in anticipationof future outbreaks.Current anthrax vaccine. The anthrax vaccine now in usedates back to the time of Louis Pasteur, in the mid-nineteenthcentury. Pasteur noted that the injection of animalswith an attenuated type of Bacillus anthracis protected theanimals from contracting anthrax. An attenuated strain ofbacteria is one that can be capable of growth, but whichdoes not cause disease. The body’s immune system willreact to the bacteria, and produce antibodies that willprotect the animal or person from future exposure to thedisease-causing bacteria. A modification of this attenuatedvaccine developed in the late 1930s still serves as theanthrax vaccine given to animals.In the late nineteenth century, the use of live bacteriaas vaccines was still too dangerous for humans. In theearly years of the twentieth century, researchers beganexploring the use of components of the anthrax bacteriumas a protective measure. In 1954, a product was developedthat consisted of soluble material called protective antigen,which is released by Bacillus anthracis, and whichcan be precipitated out of solution—along with two othercell components called the lethal factor and the edemafactor—by the use of aluminum potassium sulfate (alum).Filtering the suspension captures the antigenic compounds.By 1960, the selection of a strain of Bacillus anthracisthat produced more of the protective antigen, the use of37