Biological Warfare: Testing and Researching Toxins

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Biological Warfare: Testing and Researching Toxins

Biological Warfare is the use and employment of biological agents to harm or kill humans, animals, or plant life. Bio warfare can cause a significant amount of casualties with less preparation and work then other types of attacks. The weapons are relatively cheap and, unlike explosive attacks, biological attacks can be used to kill a select group. This meaning a biological agent can be created that would, for example only target animals or only target humans.

There are various agents used in biological warfare. The U.S. Military defines these agents as "those biological pathogens and toxins that are intended for use during military operations to cause death and disease among personnel, animals, or plants, or to deteriorate material" [1]. Examples of such agents would be bacteria, viruses, rickettsia, and toxins which are derived from biological organisms. Each have great potential to harm mass amounts of people, animals, or plants depending on the target.

The United States government has vowed to never use biological warfare agents and does not test for offensive purposes. This meaning that all testing goes towards developing immunizations, detection methods for detecting an attack, decontamination, rapid diagnostic tests and treatments. However, other countries have not taken the same action and many still test agents for their use in biological warfare.

History of Biological Warfare

Biological warfare is not a new technology. Infect the use of biological warfare goes back as far as the 1300's when swarms of rats and fleas were set loose to attack Tatar soldiers in the Black Sea port in Kaffa, currently known as Feodossia, Ukraine. The vermin carried disease wh...

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...k it is really a huge threat that some toxin will fall into the hands of some evil person. The goods of testing far out way the negatives thus the U.S. should continue testing because ignorance is not bliss.

Bibliography

1.Mauroni, Al. "Chemical and Biological Warfare". Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO Inc, 2003

2.Microbiology 101 Internet Text, 2000; http://www.slic2.wsu.edu:82/hurlbert/micro101/pages/GMBW

3.Mycoherbicide.net; http://mycoherbicide.net/HEALTH/Toxicity/toxicity.htm

4.McGovern, Thomas and Christopher, George; Biological Warfare and it's Cutaneous Manifestations; http://www.telemedicine.org/biowar/biologic.htm

5.Federation of Medical Scientists; Biological Weapons; http://www.fas.org/nuke/intro/bw/index.html

6.USAMRIIDS Medical Management of Bio Casualties handbook; http://www.usamriid.army.mil/education/bluebook/Mmbch4Adobepdfver4-02.pdf

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