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Anthrax

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Anthrax has been on America's mind recently because of terrorist attacks, ... Examples of other zoonotic disease are, cat-scratch fever, rabies and ringworm. ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Anthrax


1
Anthrax
  • A Special Lesson
  • Produced by Amber Dowd Dr. Frank B. Flanders
  • Georgia Agricultural Education Curriculum Office
  • November 2001
  • Teachers should view notes pages for additional
    information on certain slides.
  • View note pages by clicking on View and then
    Notes Page.

2
Anthrax is no stranger to agriculture
Anthrax has been on Americas mind recently
because of terrorist attacks, however, anthrax
has affected humans and animals for centuries.
3
  • Anthrax is rare on the East Coast. Farmers in the
    West, Midwest and parts of the South still deal
    routinely with anthrax.
  • Animal deaths from anthrax rarely make news.
    Deaths of wild animals such as deer and bison as
    well as domesticated animals is common.

4
  • The last documented case of anthrax in Georgia
    animals was in 1948. The environment in Georgia,
    and some other states, does not seem to be
    suitable for long-term survival of anthrax. The
    characteristics of Georgia soils (low pH and not
    as hot and dry as soils in the Western US) are
    thought to be a poor environment for anthrax
    spores.
  • Texas is one state in which anthrax is common.
    More than 1600 cattle died in Texas from anthrax
    during 2001.

5
What is Anthrax?
  • A disease of most mammals, including humans, that
    is caused by a rod-shaped, spore-forming
    bacterium called Bacillus anthracis.

6
  • Disease is defined as any deviation in the normal
    health of plants or animals.
  • Microorganisms that most commonly cause disease
    are bacteria, viruses and fungi.
  • Anthrax was the first microorganism ever linked
    specifically to a disease.

7
History of Anthrax
  • Although anthrax has recently become a greater
    threat to humans, it is suspected to have been
    around since biblical times.
  • The 5th and 6th plagues in the Bibles book of
    Exodus may have been anthrax.
  • The Black Bane, a disease that that swept
    Europe in the 1600s, was most likely anthrax.

8
  • In the 1870s, Robert Koch, a German family
    doctor, accidentally discovered anthrax while
    trying to figure out the cause of death in an
    animal.
  • In 1876, he published a paper identifying the
    bacterium, genus and species bacillus anthracis,
    as the cause of anthrax.

9
  • In 1881, Louis Pasteur made anthrax the first
    bacterial disease for which a vaccine was
    available.
  • More than 6,000 cases in humans occurred in
    Zimbabwe between October 1979 and March 1980.

10
Anthrax Worldwide
Military personnel deployed to areas with high
risk for exposure are usually vaccinated.
11
Susceptibility
All mammals appear to be susceptible to anthrax,
but ruminants such as cattle, sheep, and goats
are the most susceptible, followed by horses and
swine.
12
Anthrax is a zoonotic disease, meaning it may
spread from animals to humans. Examples of other
zoonotic disease are, cat-scratch fever, rabies
and ringworm.
However, it does not spread from human to human.
13
  • Anthrax spores occur in many areas, such as soil,
    but only become a problem when ingested in a
    sufficiently large concentration.
  • Grazing animals may be more susceptible because
    they breath air close to the ground as they graze
    where anthrax spores are in greatest
    concentration.

14
  • Anthrax zones are areas where there is a high
    concentration of anthrax spores in the soil.
  • Anthrax zones in the US are primarily where the
    cattle drive trails of the 1800s took place.
  • Spores can survive for many decades and are
    resistant to heat, sunlight, and drought.

15
Anthrax in Animals
16
How is Anthrax Contracted?
  • Animals are usually infected by ingesting
    soil-borne spores, such as in contaminated food
    or water.
  • Spores can be picked up directly from the soil or
    plants through grazing or from feed grown on
    infected soil.
  • It is possible for animals to become infected by
    inhaling dust containing anthrax spores.

17
  • Bites from flies and other insects that carry
    anthrax have also been reported to cause
    infection.
  • The incubation period of natural infection in
    animals is usually 3 to 7 days, with a range of 1
    to 14 days.

18
Symptoms in Animals
  • Signs are fever up to 107º F, muscle tremors,
    respiratory distress, and convulsions. Death
    occurs quickly and often before symptoms are
    observed.
  • Animals that die of anthrax bloat quickly. Blood
    may come from the nose and other body openings.

19
  • Animals that die of anthrax don't have rigor
    mortis (stiffening of the body after death)
    because the blood does not clot upon death.
  • A toxin released by the bacteria prevents blood
    clotting in the bodies of animals that die of
    anthrax.

20
  • Swine, dogs, and cats usually have swelling of
    the neck. Carnivores apparently have some natural
    resistance to anthrax and recovery is not
    uncommon.
  • If a problem is suspected a vet should be called
    as soon as possible.

21
Preventing Infection
  • If anthrax is diagnosed, all the animals in
    contact must be examined for up to two weeks, and
    their temperatures need to be taken regularly.
  • If an animal is found to have a fever, it should
    be given antibiotics immediately.
  • When animals are at risk of anthrax they should
    be vaccinated annually.
  • The anthrax vaccine has proven to be effective in
    field situations and can protect animals for
    about one year.

22
Treatment of Infected Animals
  • Because of the rapid course of the disease,
    infected animals are often found dead or too sick
    to be treated.
  • Anthrax can be treated if it is still in the
    early stages when fever is the only clinical
    sign.
  • The treatment for anthrax is to use antibiotics
    for at least five to six days.  

23
Disposing of Infected Animals
  • One reason for the low human rate of infection
    may be that most ranchers recognize the signs of
    anthrax in animals, know how to avoid exposure
    and to dispose of dead animals.

24
  • Contact with infected blood or tissue should be
    avoided by wearing gloves.
  • Wash-up after contact with an infected animal is
    imperative.
  • Burying infected animals only preserves the
    organism deep within the soil and is not
    recommended.

25
  • Animals that die of anthrax should be burned
    on-site in a very hot fire. Dragging them to
    another area only spreads the disease.

26
Anthrax in Humans
  • The disease occurs when spores enter the body,
    germinate, multiply, and release toxins.
  • In humans, anthrax is fairly rare the risk of
    infection is about 1/100,000.
  • Exposure to the bacteria causes the body to
    produce antibodies for the disease.
  • Most exposure is from working with infected
    animals.


27
  • Human anthrax has three major clinical forms
  • cutaneous
  • inhalation
  • gastrointestinal
  • If left untreated, anthrax in all forms can lead
    to septicemia and death.

28
Cutaneous (Skin) Anthrax is the most common.
It is contracted through a cut or abrasion on the
skin.
29
  • Inhalation anthrax is the most deadly, resulting
    in death 95-100 of the time.
  • An estimated 8 to 10 thousand spores must be
    inhaled to contract the disease.

30
  • A deadly but far less common form of anthrax
    in humans is gastrointestinal anthrax, contracted
    from eating undercooked, infected meat.
  • It is fatal 20-60 of the time without
    treatment, but is very rare, because animals
    usually die within 12 to 48 hours after
    contracting anthrax.
  • Farmers generally know not to butcher and eat
    animals that die of unknown causes.

31
  • The last case of inhalation anthrax in the United
    States before 2001 was in 1976 in California.
  • The last case of cutaneous anthrax before 2001
    occurred in North Dakota in 2000.

32
Am I at risk?
  • The average person has a very small chance of
    being exposed to anthrax, however, everyone
    should be extremely watchful and careful,
    especially around sick animals.
  • USDA inspections of commercially processed meat
    keeps our food supply safe.
  • A person can be exposed without having the
    disease.

33
Symptoms in Humans
  • Fever (greater than 100 F)
  • Flu-like symptoms (most common)
  • Cough, chest discomfort, shortness of breath,
    fatigue, muscle aches
  • Sore throat, difficulty swallowing, enlarged
    lymph nodes, headache, nausea, loss of appetite,
    abdominal distress, vomiting, or diarrhea  
  • A sore on the face, arms or hands, that starts as
    a raised bump and develops into a painless ulcer
    with a black area in the center

34
Diagnosis and Treatment
  • Anthrax can be diagnosed by testing for
    antibodies or bacteria in blood.
  • Antibiotics, such as Cipro, are used to treat
    anthrax.

35
Anthrax as a Weapon
  • To some military planners, anthrax is the single
    greatest biological warfare threat.
  • Even though there are world treaties against
    using biological and chemical weapons, it is
    suspected that countries are still producing them.

36
  • The first attempt to use anthrax as a biological
    warfare agent occurred in World War I, when
    Norwegian police arrested a German agent carrying
    two vials of the bacteria to be used to infect
    reindeer ferrying supplies to allied forces in
    Europe. The spores were still viable when
    scientists analyzed them in 1998.

37
  • In World War I almost every country involved had
    a biological warfare program that included
    anthrax.
  • During World War II, Britain experimented with
    anthrax as a biological warfare agent on a
    British island.
  • After the war, the island was burned to
    decontaminate it. However, after burning, the
    concentration of anthrax was the same as before
    it was burned. Britain needed 36 years to clean
    up the island.

38
  • Anthrax is considered a viable biological weapon
    because
  • it produces spores that are hard to kill and that
    last for decades.
  • it kills quickly.
  • it can be ground to a fine powder that can be
    suspended in the air.
  • it is easy and cheap to produce.
  • it has a potential for mass destruction.

39
Anthrax in the Mail
  • In 2001, terrorists began sending anthrax through
    the mail.
  • In some instances, anthrax exposures have
    occurred with several persons becoming infected,
    and some have died.
  • To prevent exposure everyone should learn how to
    recognize a suspicious package or envelope.

40
Summary
  • Anthrax
  • has been around since biblical times
  • is a disease agricultural producers have always
    had to deal with
  • can be used as a deadly biological weapon
  • is common along the cattle trails of the west
  • is caused by a bacteria
  • is a manageable disease unless spread maliciously

41
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