Biological Warfare: An Emerging Threat

Souhrid Sarkar, Amity University Kolkata

UNDERSTADING BIOLOGICAL WARFARE

Biological warfare is a primitive concept that has been in use for nearly 2000 years. Evidence for the deliberate use of microorganisms and toxins as bioweapons are there throughout history. Biological warfare is the use of biological toxins or infectious pathogens such as bacteria, viruses, insects, and fungi with a deliberate intent to kill, harm humans, animals, or plants as an act of war. While the deliberate release of such harmful agents causing illness or death in people, animals, or plants is termed bioterrorism.

TYPES OF BIO-WARFARE :

Biological War is distinct from warfare and it involves other kinds of WMD or Weapon Mass Destruction such as :

Nuclear warfare

Nuclear warfare may be a military conflict or political strategy which uses nuclear weapons. It can produce destruction in a very short period and can have a long-lasting radiological result.

Chemical warfare

Chemical warfare involves the use of toxic chemical substances as weapons. The primary effects of chemical weapons can be controlled. But practically they continue to cause much suffering, as most victims are defenseless to such toxic pathogens.

Radiological warfare

Radiological warfare is caused by radiological substances on the surfaces or within solids, liquids, or gases and also the human body.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF BIO-WAR :

The history of biological warfare is vast. An early example of bio-war takes us back to 2.5 million years. Assyrians infected their enemy’s wells with Claviceps purpurea, a rye ergot fungus, which contains chemicals related to LSD. Consuming this tainted water caused a confused mental state, hallucinations, and, in some cases, it was lethal.

In the 1300s, Tatar Mongol warriors captured the Crimean city of Kaffa. During this time, many Tatars died due to a plague, and their lifeless, infected bodies were hurled over the walls of the city. As per some studies it was found that these tactics lead to the spread of the Black Death plague into Europe, which eventually resulted in the death of about 25 million Europeans.

Moving to the year 1763, the British Army intended to use smallpox as a weapon against Native Americans at the Siege of Fort Pitt. In an attempt to spread the disease to the locals, the British presented blankets from a smallpox hospital as gifts. Although this could seem to be an ineffective way to transmit smallpox but the intent was there.

During World War II, many countries were involved in looking for various biological warfare with great interest. The Allies created facilities that were capable of producing anthrax spores, brucellosis, and botulism toxins. It was Japan who made the most use of biological weapons during World War II, as among other dangerous indiscriminate attacks, the Japanese Army Air Force dropped ceramic bombs which had fleas carrying the bubonic plague on Ningbo, China.

Here’s a quote that comes from a newspaper stating about the history of biological warfare:

“The Japanese force poisoned over 1,000 water wells in Chinese villages to study cholera and typhus outbreaks. Some of the epidemics they caused remained for years which continued to kill more than 30,000 people in the year of 1947, long after the Japanese had surrendered.”

• Dr. Friedrich Frischknecht, Heidelberg University, Germany

Some of The Most Dangerous Bioweapons known to mankind throughout history :

Anthrax

It is caused by the Bacillus anthracis bacteria. It was used as a dangerous bioweapon for about a century and was spread by mixing with powders, sprays, food, and water. The first anthrax outbreak occurred in USSR in the year 1979, though there were several anthrax attacks after that, like in 2001(Anthrax spores were mailed to several media houses and 2 US Senators); 2014 (Outbreak of gastrointestinal and skin anthrax was reported in Jharkhand); 2016 (Spread by the nomadic communities in Northern Siberia and Russia); 2018 (Cattle farms were affected in France).

Botulism

Botulism is caused by Clostridium botulinum bacteria. Between 1932 and 1945 in Japan, botulism was used as a biological weapon to infect multiple prisoners of war (POWs). Resulting in muscle weakness, difficulty in speaking and swallowing, and double or blurred vision.

Smallpox

The Variola major virus was the causative agent of Smallpox, which was a highly contagious and infectious disease that has no cure and can be only prevented by vaccination. It is a bioweapon that was used against the Native Americans during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783).

Plague

The Yersinia pestis bacterium was responsible for the bubonic Plague which is also referred to as Black Death. The symptoms included weakness, fever, pneumonia and if not treated early, leads to lungs failure and damages. During Great Northern War Plague Outbreak (1708-1712) many areas around Central-East Europe and the Baltic Sea faced a massive outbreak of plague.

Ebola Virus Disease

It was caused due to the spread of the Ebola virus and is transmitted to humans from wild animals having a fatality rate of 50%. First discovered in 1976 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and was allegedly used as a biological weapon by the Soviet Union between 1986 to 1990.

Aflatoxin

They are associated with harmful metabolites caused by some strains of fungi, leading to cell or organ death, Cirrhosis liver disease resulting in liver failure, and cancer. As aflatoxin has extremely low toxicity, so a larger quantity is required to be dispersed on the battlefield for causing lethal impact. Aflatoxin epidemic was first reported in India during 1975 among the Bhulis due to huge consumption of corn which was infected by A. flavus

Marburg Haemorrhagic Fever (Marburg HF)

It is caused by the Marburg virus of the filovirus family that also includes the Ebola virus, which was first reported in 1967. As per the CDC, the Marburg virus is a Category A bio-warfare agent and it is present as a host in African fruit bats.

Bunyavirus disease

It belongs to the Bunyaviridae family of viruses which includes Nairovirus, Phlebovirus, and Hantavirus. Korean hemorrhagic fever which is caused by Hantavirus broke out during the Korean War (1951-1953) when approximately 3,000 American and Korean soldiers were infected. Though the virus’s occurrence was first reported in the year 1978 in a field rodent called Apodemus agrarius located near the Hantan river (the virus was named Hantaan after this river). Generally, this virus is transmitted by arthropods, rodents, and also by humans in some cases.

Tularemia

Francisella tularensis is considered an extremely infectious and dangerous gram-negative coccobacillus which was used as a bio-weapon by the Soviet Red Army against German troops during the Battle of Stalingrad during World War II which was held between 1942-1943.                             

A FUTURE TO FRET ABOUT?

Though bioweapons have been talked about for a long time, the trendy advancements especially in the field of gene-editing technology come with it certain new aspects to worry about. Just as a coin has two sides, the gene-editing technology called CRISPR has two sides to it as well. On one side, the merit of this technology is in its ability to correct naturally occurring genetic defects and help treat or prevent otherwise devastating and fatal diseases, the potential demerit is the intentional misuse of this powerful tool to manipulate the genetic makeup of human embryos for yielding “desirable” characteristics. Hence, the bioethical aspect has been a topic of global debate and controversy.

CRISPR set off the alarm in the defense community where it allows researchers to edit genomes, thereby easily modifying DNA sequences to alter gene function. Being cheaper to run therefore it is becoming far more accessible to individuals inclined on bioterrorism. With modern generations of CRISPR- technology, and advancements in genetic engineering, there would be no end to the potential disaster if it was to occur.

 SARS CoV-2 CONTROVERSY

There remains a lot of uncertainty and controversy about the origin of the coronavirus strain responsible for causing COVID-19. Some experts seem to agree that it wasn’t the merchandise of human engineering. Much research has been focused on the hypothesis that bats being the original host for the virus, transferred it to another secondary animal host, the most likely candidate for which was considered to be pangolins, which are scaly ant-eating mammals. And from them, the virus subsequently transmitted onto humans. Nevertheless, it is only a speculation at this stage as evidence to support it is scarce. Some experts further speculate that the coronavirus family reportedly being studied at the Wuhan laboratory was accidentally released due to potential unknown mishaps. An article that was written by researchers and health officials five years before the current pandemic, i.e., in 2015, mentioned that SARS CoV-2 could define a “new era of genetic weapons” that would be used as an emerging deadly human virus which can be then weaponised and unleashed, as stated in the TheWeekend Australian. The article in the paper titled ‘The Unnatural Origin of SARS and New Species of Synthetic Viruses as Genetic Bioweapons’ claimed that World War 3 would be fought with biological weapons. But overall, its uncertain to this day whether SARS‑CoV‑2 was the result of an accident or if it indeed was an intentional move by the alleged Wuhan laboratory, further determination of which although might be necessary as early as possibile. But something thats more urgent at this hour is for mankind to find its way through this ongoing pandemic and survive by improving medical technologies and inventing effective vaccines and drugs.

To learn more about the various coronavirus strains and their severties: https://bioxone.in/articles/bioxone-articles/different-coronavirus-strains-and-their-severity/

Learn more on global advancements in vaccines against COVID-19: https://bioxone.in/articles/bioxone-articles/covid-19-vaccines-around-the-world/   

REFERENCES :

1. Basulto D. (2015). Everything you need to know about why CRISPR is such a hot technology. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/innovations/wp/2015/11/04/everything-you-need-to-know-about-why-crispr-is-such-a-hot-technology/
2. Wheelis, M., Rózsa, L., & Dando, M. (Eds.). (2006). Deadly cultures: Biological weapons since 1945. Harvard University Press. https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674016996
3. Barras, V., & Greub, G. (2014). History of biological warfare and bioterrorism. Clinical Microbiology and Infection, 20(6), 497–502. https://doi.org/10.1111/1469-0691.12706
4. Warner J, Ramsbotham J, Tunia E, and Valdes J J. (2011). Analysis of the Threat of Genetically Modified Organisms for Biological Warfare. National Defense University Press. https://ndupress.ndu.edu/Media/News/News-Article-View/Article/1229164/dtp-082-analysis-of-the-threat-of-genetically-modified-organisms-for-biological/
5. Williams, P., & Wallace, D. (1989). Unit 731: Japan’s secret biological warfare in World War II (1st American ed). Free Press.
6. Frischknecht, F. (2003). The history of biological warfare. EMBO Reports, 4(Suppl1), S47–S52. https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.embor.embor849
7. Anthrax fact sheet—Center for biosecurity.   http://www.upmc-biosecurity.org/website/our_work/biological-threats-and-epidemics/fact_sheets/anthrax.html
8. Anthrax image: Details – Public Health Image Library(PHIL) (cdc.gov)
9. Botulism image: Details – Public Health Image Library(PHIL) (cdc.gov)
10. Small pox image: Details – Public Health Image Library(PHIL) (cdc.gov)
11. Plague Image: Details – Public Health Image Library(PHIL) (cdc.gov)
12. Ebola image: Details – Public Health Image Library(PHIL) (cdc.gov)
13. Marburg virus virions: Details – Public Health Image Library(PHIL) (cdc.gov)
14. Tularemia image: Details – Public Health Image Library(PHIL) (cdc.gov)

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