Brucellosis Biological warfare
|
Brucellosis Microchapters |
|
Diagnosis |
|---|
|
Treatment |
|
Case Studies |
|
Brucellosis Biological warfare On the Web |
|
American Roentgen Ray Society Images of Brucellosis Biological warfare |
|
Risk calculators and risk factors for Brucellosis Biological warfare |
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Raviteja Guddeti, M.B.B.S. [2] Danitza Lukac
Overview
Brucellosis is an ancient disease. According to some studies, there is evidence that brucellosis occurred in animals 60 million years ago and 3 million ago in animals. In 450 BC, Hippocrates described a disease similar to brucellosis.
Historical Perspective
Brucellosis is an ancient disease. According to some studies, there is evidence that brucellosis occurred in animals 60 million years ago and 3 million ago in animals. In 450 BC, Hippocrates described a disease similar to brucellosis. Few important events in understanding the nature of disease are:[1][2][3][4]
- Around 20 million years ago, Moreno et. al reported the presence of Brucella abortus and Brucella melitensis in double-hoofed animals
- In 1860, Jeffery Allen Marston, surgical assistant in Royal Academy of Medicine, described Brucellosis as “gastric remittent fever”
- In 1887, Sir David Bruce, Scottish physician, isolated gram negative coccobacilli from spleens of five british soldiers, termed it as Micrococcus.
- In 1895, the Danish veterinarian Bernard Lauritz Frederik Bang isolated microorganisms, called Bacillus abortus
- In 1897, Wright and Smith described brucellosis as a zoonotic disease, after detecting specific antibodies of Brucella melitensis in human and animal serum.
- In 1897, Bernhard Bang, Danish veterinarian isolated Brucella abortus as the agent and the additional name Bang's disease was assigned. In modern usage "Bang's disease" is often shortened to just "bangs" when ranchers discuss the disease or vaccine.
- In 1905, Maltese doctor and archaeologist Sir Temi Zammit identified unpasteurized milk as the major source of the pathogen and it has since become known as Malta Fever, or deni rqiq locally. In cattle this disease is also known as contagious abortion and infectious abortion.
- The popular name "undulant fever" originates from the characteristic undulance (or "wave-like" nature) of the fever which rises and falls over weeks in untreated patients. In the 20th Century, this name, along with "brucellosis" (after Brucella, named for Dr Bruce), gradually replaced the 19th Century names "Mediterranean fever" and "Malta fever".
- In 1989, neurologists in Saudi Arabia discovered "neurobrucellosis", a neurological involvement in brucellosis.
Biological warfare
- Brucella species were weaponized by several advanced countries by the mid-20th century.
- In 1954, B. suis became the first agent weaponized by the U.S. at its Pine Bluff Arsenal in Arkansas.
- Brucella species survive well in aerosols and resist drying.
- Brucella and all other remaining biological weapons in the US arsenal were destroyed in 1971-72 when the U.S. offensive biological weapons (BW) program was discontinued.
- The United States BW program focused on three agents of the Brucella group:
- Porcine Brucellosis (Agent US)
- Bovine Brucellosis (Agent AB)
- Caprina Brucellosis (Agent AM)
- Agent US was in advanced development by the end of the Second World War.
- When the USAF wanted a biological warfare capability, the Chemical Corps offered agent US in the M114 bomblet, based after the 4-pound bursting bomblet developed for anthrax in the Second World War.
- Though the capability was developed, operational testing indicated that the weapon was less than desirable, and the USAF termed it an interim capability until replaced by a more effective biological weapon.
- The main drawbacks of the M114 with agent US was that it was incapacitating (the USAF wanted "killer" agents), the storage stability was too low to allow for storing at forward air bases, and the logistical requirements to neutralize a target were far higher than originally anticipated, requiring unreasonable logistical air support.
- Agents US and AB:
- Had a median infective dose of 500 org/person.
- The rate-of-action was believed to be 2 weeks, with a duration of action of several months.
- The lethality estimate was based on epidemiological information at 1- 2%.
- Agent AM:
- Has a median infective dose of 300 org/person.
- AM was always believed to be a more virulent disease.
- The lethality estimate was based on epidemiological information at 3%.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Brucellosis. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brucellosis. Accessed on February 1, 2016
- ↑ Akpinar O (2016). "Historical perspective of brucellosis: a microbiological and epidemiological overview". Infez Med. 24 (1): 77–86. PMID 27031903.
- ↑ Vassallo DJ (1996). "The saga of brucellosis: controversy over credit for linking Malta fever with goats' milk". Lancet. 348 (9030): 804–8. PMID 8813991.
- ↑ Wright A.E., Smith F. On the application of the serum test to the differential diagnosis of typhoid fever and Malta fever. Lancet. 1, 656-659,1897