Anthrax: a rare and deadly killer

Introduction: in 1998, former U.S Defense Secretary Cohen explained the threat of anthrax on television in order to demonstrate the ability of the United States to deal with biological and chemical weapons Cohen, holding a bag of 2.25kg white sugar in his hand, said that to attack a big city, an equivalent weight of anthrax bacteria would be needed Among all the potential biological and chemical weapons that terrorists may use, anthrax is the most likely one, because this kind of bacteria has existed for a long time in human history, has been widely studied, and it appears in global areas, which is easier to obtain than other bacterial weapons Anthrax is not contagious It doesn't spread from one person to another Anthrax causing bacterium anthrax exists in soil as spores and can survive for decades under certain conditions For centuries, anthrax has been known to cause disease in animals, especially herbivorous animals such as horses, cattle, pigs, sheep, etc The disease rarely occurs in people At present, animal anthrax has been found in about 82 countries, and human anthrax cases usually occur in the Middle East, Africa and CIS countries Anthrax is also known as "shearer's disease" in the United States, because from 1900 to 1978, 18 anthrax patients found in the United States were mostly engaged in wool or sheepskin treatment The study of anthrax as a biological weapon dates back to the first World War It is said that Germany used this weapon, but it has never been confirmed In the Second World War, the United States, Britain and Japan all studied anthrax as a biological weapon There are three channels of anthrax infection: respiration, diet and skin penetration Anthrax is most lethal when inhaled Antibiotics can inhibit anthrax, but only if they are used within 48 hours of exposure The most commonly used antibiotics are penicillin G, ciprofloxacin and doxycycline Antibiotics can make people survive after making people immune to anthrax, but after the early symptoms appear, inhaled anthrax is usually fatal, and any treatment will not help Cutaneous anthrax is less lethal and can still be treated effectively after early symptoms appear The incubation period of anthrax is 1 to 7 days, and the complete onset is up to 60 days Its initial symptoms include syncope, fever and remission, but the patient will suddenly have dyspnea, sweating and skin cyanosis, and finally shock and death A report published by the United States in 1999 said that anthrax spores could spread in a few hours or up to one day if they were successfully planted in the air through biological weapons Anthrax spores are colorless and odorless and can spread for several kilometers.