Return to Vaccination News Home Page __» Right-click to "open in new window"
Subscribe to the Vaccination NewsLetter
View past & current Scandals (columns by Sandy Mintz)
Search This Site using keywords
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/US/reuters20030630_597.html
|
Study: Influenza May Be Next Bioterror Weapon
|
June 30 — LONDON (Reuters) - Forget anthrax and smallpox. Influenza could easily be turned into the next weapon of mass destruction, scientists said on Tuesday. They sounded their warning as researchers come close to completing the blueprint for the virus of the 1918 'flu epidemic that killed up to 40 million people globally. "Taken together with the fact that influenza virus is readily accessible and may be causing more deaths than previously suspected, the possibility for genetic engineering and aerosol transmission suggests an enormous potential for bioterrorism," the University of Texas scientists said. |
Writing in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, the team led by Dr Mohammed Madjid noted that last century a series of 'flu epidemics from Spain to Russia and Hong Kong had killed millions of people as the virus naturally mutated.
They pointed out that sequencing of the genome of the 1918 Spanish 'flu epidemic was nearly complete, opening the door to unscrupulous scientists to build an even more potent virus.
"Recently, the possibility of synthesizing an infectious agent solely by following instructions from a written sequence has moved from theory to practice," they wrote.
The scientists also noted that while infection generally took place through personal contact, the disease was also easily transmissible through tiny droplets in the air.
A would-be bioterrorist needed only to spray an aerosol containing the weaponized virus inside a passenger plane to set off a global infection.
They pointed out that in contrast to agents such as smallpox which are carefully guarded, the 'flu virus was relatively freely available.
It had the added advantage that because it occurred naturally, the beginning of a purposely started outbreak would not set off alarm bells, giving the disease a major head start on the people trying to fight it.
Noting that its appeal to the bioterrorist also lay in the fact that it had a short incubation period and did not succumb to post-exposure immunization, the scientists set out a list of demands for urgent action.
There should be more immunization, they said, laboratory security should be raised, antiviral drugs should be stockpiled, there should be closer monitoring of outbreaks and governments should consider fitting filters and sensors to buildings.
Copyright 2003 Reuters News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Copyright © 2003 ABCNEWS Internet Ventures.
Return to Vaccination News Home Page __» Right-click to "open in new window"
DISCLAIMER: All information, data, and material contained, presented, or provided here is for general information purposes only and is not to be construed as reflecting the knowledge or opinions of the publisher, and is not to be construed or intended as providing medical or legal advice. The decision whether or not to vaccinate is an important and complex issue and should be made by you, and you alone, in consultation with your health care provider.
