BIOTERRORISM

1
BIOTERRORISM

• Elizabeth Rogers
• Mary Ilgenfritz
• Cavin Segil
• Jamie Krushensky
• Codie Wyers

2
What is Bioterrorism?

• Bioterrorism can be described as the use, or
  threatened use, of biological agents to promote
  or spread fear or intimidation upon an
  individual, a specific group, or the population
  as a whole for religious, political, ideological,
  financial, or personal purposes.

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History of Bioterrorism

• In the 6th century, biological agents were used
  in warfare
• Use of rye ergot by the Assyrians to poison enemy
  water
• 14th century use of catapults to deliver
  bioweapons
• Catapult cadavers of plague victims
• Smallpox spread to the New World during the
  French and Indian War
• Direct assaults with chemical agents during WWI

4
History cont.

• Research continued in the US and Soviet Union
  during the 1940s
• Many nations joined forces with the Biological
  Weapons Convention (BWC) in 1972 to prohibit the
  development and use of biological warfare agents.
• Bioterrorism is still a threat - domestic and
  foreign terrorists have used biological agents as
  weapons in recent years, causing multiple
  injuries and deaths to victims.

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How could it affect us?

• These biological agents, with the exception of
  smallpox virus, are typically found in nature in
  various parts of the world.
• They can be weaponized to enhance their virulence
  in humans and make them resistant to vaccines and
  antibiotics.
• using selective reproduction pressure or
  recombinant engineering
• http//www.ncsu.edu/kenanfellows/2003/bwood/biote
  rrorism/history/definition.html

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Preview

• Animal bioterrorism
• Zoonotic bioterrorism agents
• The 3 bioterrorism agent categories
• The severity and threat of the disease
• Using bioterrorism on Animals

7
Preview Cont

• Anthrax
• Path of destruction
• How the disease is spread
• Cutaneous
• Gastrointestinal
• Inhalation
• Prevention

8
Preview cont

• Biological terrorism preparedness and prevention
  information
• Criteria for state preparedness
• Statistics on how many states passed each
  criteria
• Recommendations for how states can become more
  prepared

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Animal Bioterrorism
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Animals as Sentinels

• Zoonotic Bioterrorism Agents
• Zoonotic A disease of animals that can be
  transmitted to humans
• 3 Categories of Zoonotic Diseases
• Category A
• (most severe)
• Category B
• (Moderate)
• Category C
• (could pose as threat in future)

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Zoonotic Agents

• Emergence factors for pathogens in Humans
• Human activity
• Directly
• Ex working directly with animals (farms,
  veterinarians, ect)
• Indirectly
• Increasing density of human
• population
• Rapid Rates of Global Travel
• Speeds up rates of transmission

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Zoonotic Agents (Cont)

• Emergence Factors for pathogens in Animals
• Increasing density of Monotypic Animal
  Populations
• Larger numbers of closely related (inbred)
  animals
• Less versatile Populations
• Leads to one key fact
• More Imunodeficient species
• prone to more illnesses

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Categories of Zoonotic Diseases

• Category A
• Transmitted
• Person to person
• Animal to person
• High Mortality Rate
• Can Cause Social Disruption or Public Panic
• Requires Pre-preparedness

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Category A (Cont)

• Example
• Anthrax
• Transmitted via ingestion, inhalation, and
  introduction through skin
• Person to person
• Animal to person
• Environment to person
• Plague
• Transmitted via Fleas, Rabbits, Wild Rodents,
  and rarely infected domestic cats
• Incorrect Example
• Smallpox
• Not zoonotic
• No animal reservoir
• Potential zoonotic vaccine

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Category B

• Transmitted mainly animal to person
• Moderate to low mortality rates
• Requires surveillance and specific enhancements
  of diagnostic capabilities

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Category B (Cont)

• Examples
• Brucelosis
• Transmitted by ingesting contaminated milk or
  meat from infected animals
• Q Fever
• Transmitted by many domesticated animals
• Results from inhalation of contaminated air
  particles
• Possibly the most common infectious disease in
  the world
• Staphylococcus
• Wide variety of diseases in both animals and
  humans
• Transmitted through toxin production or
  invasions.

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Q Fever
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Category C

• Includes emerging pathogens
• Possibly used for mass dissemination in the
  future
• Easily produced
• High potential for mortality and major health
  impacts

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Category C (Cont)

• Hantavirus
• A group of viruses carried by rodents
• Exposure to infected rodents urine, droppings,
  and saliva
• Or breathing contaminated dust after rustling up
  a nest
• Yellow Fever
• Transmitted through mosquitoes to people
• Preventative vaccine has been created

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Hantavirus Transmission
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Examples of other Common Zoonotic Diseases

• West Nile ?
• Mad Cow Disease ?
• Bird Flu ?
• Salmonella ?

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An Idea of How Easily These Diseases Could Spread

• Animal Populations within the U.S

• Dogs gt 60 Million
• Cats gt 70 Million
• Horses gt 5.1 Million
• Cattlegt 97.3 Million
• Pigs gt 60 Million
• Poultry gt 440 Million
• Wildlife at least gt 1 Billion

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Using Bioterrorism on Animals

• Could introduce a new dimension to bioterrorism
• Provides perpetrators a way to harm a Nation
  becoming more immune to conventional terrorist
  attacks
• Attack economy and economic well being as opposed
  to humans directly
• Possible secondary effects on humans are vast and
  potentially very devastating

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Bioterrorism on Animals (Cont)

• Very difficult to prove intentional with either
  exotic or endemic pathogens
• Exotic pathogen- not of the landscape it was
  introduced in
• Endemic pathogen- native
• Can be instigated without violating international
  arms control agreement
• Will not lead to an international man-hunt or
  military responses

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Bioterrorism on Animals (Cont)

• There is no prohibition of agro-terrorism or
  economic sabotage
• Not yet considered to be hostile under any laws
• Law has been in the works for more than 6 years
  now
• Preventative Measures for controlling Zoonotic
  diseases in Humans and Animals
• Isolate infected sentinel animals
• Pest prevention
• Rodents, Fleas, Ect.
• Public Health Education
• Prophylactic Antibiotics
• Make Americans aware of their vulnerabilities
• Spark questioning of the origin of it all

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Detecting Bioterrorism

• Port-of entry import inspection and Quarantine
• Immigration Screening and Fumigation
• Extension Services and Field Investigators
• Signs in Animals of possible bioterrorism
• Respiratory
• Plague
• Sudden Death
• Anthrax
• Plague
• Abortion
• Brucellosis
• Neurological
• West Nile

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Detecting Bioterrorism (Cont)

• Diagnostics and Research
• Provided animals are observed they can act as
• Secondary disseminators
• Secondary Spreaders
• Shedders
• Research will expose an atypical exposure route
• May perpetuate the outbreak
• May cause transmission to wildlife from domestic
  animals
• When animals show signs of atypical symptoms with
  natural diseases it is then that they serve as
  sentinels

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Bio-terrorism

• Anthrax

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Anthrax
Oxygen
Bacillus anthracis
Infects human or animal
Persists in Environment
Microbe in Soil
Endospore
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• Types of Spread
• Cutaneous- skin, least harmful, enters through
  abrasion or cuts, causes leison with black scab
• Gastrointestinal- ingesting infected meat or
  water, nausea, abdominal pain and bleeding,
  fever, vomiting, can be treated with antibiotics
  early on.
• Inhalation- most dangerous, inhaled, resembles
  flu symptoms but progresses to fluid in lungs and
  respiratory failure.

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Spread of Anthrax

• Animals are the most likely to disrupt the
  endospores in the soil and are then infected
• The most common way of infection for humans is by
  coming into contact with contaminated animals, or
  by eating contaminated food.
• It can be used in bioterrorism through the use of
  bombs or spread by mail.

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Anthrax

• Inhalation is most commonly used for
  Bio-terrorism.
• Process
• -Must be aerosolized- this is difficult because
  the spores must be ground into a fine powder by
  certain technological processes.
• -Once in proper form the delivery is simple
  through the use of commercial aerosol
  products.
• - Most recent outbreak was spread through the
  postal services
• by letters containing the anthrax powder.

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Anthrax

• Infection Process

Air Sacs of Lungs
Germination
Toxins Produced
Lymph Nodes in center of chest
hemorrhage, edema, tissue necrosis
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Anthrax

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  places anthrax into Category-A which means it may
  pose a big threat to public health, has potential
  to spread fast, or needs many preventative
  planning beforehand.

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Distribution
Commonly found in South and Central America,
Eastern Europe, Middle East, Asia, Africa, and
the Caribbean
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Prevention

• Currently since Anthrax is a threat they are
• Training medical employees in case of attack
• Researching in safe laboratories- isolating
  samples, running tests
• Educating general public
• Making sure hospitals and laboratories have
  proper supplies and equipment

37
Biotechnology

• Biotechnology is increasing in popularity due to
  economic, medical and food security benefits
• The fear of Bio-terrorism from the attacks of
  2001 have scared many
• Anthrax attacks fast and are hard to detect
  because the inhalation form resembles the flu at
  first.
• Vaccines are available but anthrax is not the
  only biological terror that could have
  detrimental effects
• A standard microbiological technique can make
  anthrax resistant to antibiotics
• Also a modified smallpox could overwhelm the
  immune system even to those already vaccinated

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Preventing Bioterrorism

• Large scale bioterrorist attacks are difficult
  and require large amounts of expertise, money,
  time and physical resources that only individual
  nations can provide
• As of now there is a bio-defense program, but it
  is only aimed at protecting the armed forces
• We need to know what nations are against the
  United States and work towards preventing instead
  of preparing

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Is the U.S prepared?

• Funding for preparedness to biological threats
  has dropped more than 25 since 2005
• Funding has dropped from 704 million to 919
  million
• On top of federal cuts, 11 states and Washington,
  DC, trimmed their public health budgets in the
  past year.
• Thirty-three states are facing budgets deficits
  in 2009, and 16 more states are expecting
  deficits in 2010.

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What is being prepared?

• States are measured on a preparedness scale based
  on a 10 criteria checklist
• These are a few of the checklist sections along
  with states that passed or failed test
• Ability to distribute supplies from the Strategic
  National Stockpile all states passed
• Purchase of 50 or more of the state's share of
  federally subsidized antiviral drugs to stockpile
  for a flu pandemic 16 states fell below this
  level
• Ability of the state's public health lab to meet
  the requirements of the state's pandemic plan
  three statesCalifornia, Kansas, and Ohio failed

41
Being prepared continued

• Liability protection for organizations that
  provide services in a health emergency 24 states
  failed
• A coordinator for the state's Medical Reserve
  Corps 17 states don't have one
• A record of having identified the causes of at
  least 44 of food borne disease outbreaks, which
  is the national average 20 states and DC
  identified fewer
• Steady or increased public health funding from
  fiscal years 2006-07 to 2007-08 11 states
  decreased such funding
• Five statesLouisiana, New Hampshire, North
  Carolina, Virginia, and Wisconsinmet all 10
  preparedness criteria. On the other end, Arizona,
  Connecticut, Florida, Maryland, Montana, and
  Nebraska tied for the lowest scorefive out of
  ten

42
Recommendations for Improvement

• Federal, state, and local funding for
  preparedness should be restored to 2005 levels.
• The Obama administration should clarify the
  relative preparedness roles and responsibilities
  of departments
• Dept. Health and Human Services and Homeland
  Security.
• Federal, state, and local governments and
  healthcare providers must do a better job of
  addressing altered standards of care, liability
  protection, and surge workforce issues.
• The federal government should provide for
  emergency health insurance coverage and paid sick
  leave during a flu pandemic or bioterrorist
  attack.

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Bio-terrorism

• In Conclusion..

44
Overview

• Animal Bioterrorism
• Bioterrorism Anthrax
• Bioterrorism Preparedness Prevention
  Information
• 
  

45
Animal Bioterrorism

• Key Points
• Using bioterrorism on Animals
• Provides perpetrators with a way to harm a
  nation becoming more
• immune to terrorist attacks
• Attack economy
• Possible secondary effects on humans are vast
  and potentially devastating
• important because by acknowledging the
  adverse affects of using bioterrorism on animals
  allows us to not be as vulnerable. It also gives
  incentive to find ways of preventing bioterrorism
  on animals when knowing the negative causes of
  this.
• Ways of detecting bioterrorism in animals
• Port of entry import inspection and quarantine
• Immigration screening and fumigation
• Extension services and field investigations
• important because it allows us to be aware and
  know the signs of bioterrorism used on animals.
  Also it is good to know the various ways of
  detecting so we have a better chance of detecting
  animals that are being used for bioterrorism.
• Diagnostics and Research- if observed and
  researched , animals may serve as a way to
  prevent terrorists from using animals for
  bioterrorism.

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Bioterrorism Anthrax

• Key Points
• How Anthrax is Spread
• Cutaneous-Through the skin
• Gastrointestinal-Ingesting
• Inhalation-Breathing in
• Symptoms are similar to the flu at first
• What is being done Training medical employees,
  researching in safe laboratories, educating the
  public, and making sure hospitals have proper
  supplies and equipment.
• Important to know so we are not prime victims for
  an anthrax attack the more informed we are the
  better. Especially when it comes to something as
  threatening as anthrax.

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Bioterrorism Preparedness Prevention

• Key Points
• Funding for preparedness to biological threats
  has dropped more than 25 since 2005
• Funding has dropped from 704 million to 919
  million
• Thirty-three states are facing budgets deficits
  in 2009, and 16 states are expecting deficits in
  2010
• States are measured on a preparedness scale using
  10 state preparedness indicators
• Funding for preparedness should at least get back
  to the level it was at in 2005. This information
  is important because it informs the public and
  shows the public what currently is going on with
  preparedness and prevention of biological
  terrorism.
• Questions or comments??

48
Sources

• http//www.ncsu.edu/kenanfellows/2003/bwood/bioter
  rorism/history/definition.html
• http//www.dcmsonline.org/jax-medicine/2005journal
  s/bioterrorism/bioterrorism_history.pdf
• http//www.bt.cdc.gov/bioterrorism/

49
References

• http//www.discoverlife.org/20/m?kindAnthraxfulv
  ohirta
• http//www.explorebiotech.com/anthrax.htm
• http//www.ncsu.edu/kenanfellows/2003/bwood/bioter
  rorism/history/definition.html
• http//www.dcmsonline.org/jax-medicine/2005journal
  s/bioterrorism/bioterrorism_history.pdf
• http//www.bt.cdc.gov/bioterrorism/

50
References Continued

• www.avma.org/avmecollections/zu/default.asp1http
• www.fas.org/ahead/bwconcerns/agroterror.htm
• www.avma.org/refernce/zoonosis/znterrorism.asphttp
  
• www.public-health.uiowa.edu/icphp/ed_training/ttt/
  archive/2003/2003_course_materials/0825_davis.pdf

51
References Continued

• www.healthlink.mcw.edu/article/1005765305.htmlhttp
  
• www.cdc.gov/nczved/dfbmd/disease_listing/anthrax_g
  i.htmlwhat
• http//jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/287/17/2
  236http//images.google.com/images?gbv2hlenqa
  nthraxstart20saNndsp20http
• www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/anthrax/needtoknow.asp