Biological warfare toxins

In addition to the immunochromatographic assays, another system used by the Allies during Desert Storm for the detection of biological warfare agents was the Light Addressable Potentiometric System (LAPS) produced by Molecular Devices (Sunnyvale, CA)19. The LAPS detected toxins and... 

Caution The T-2 mycotoxins are the only potential biological warfare agents that can harm and be absorbed through intact skin. Aerosol doses of T-2 toxins may be ten times more potent than parenteral doses. 

T2 mycotoxin was used as the antigen. Fusarium tricinctum during cultivation may form about 9 g of T2 toxin per 1 kg of the solid or liquid substrate with the final output of the crystalline product about 2-3 g/kg [24-26]. T2 mycotoxin is sometimes referred to as the biological weapon of omnicide [27-29] since its toxicity is more than 400 times higher than most other biological warfare agents [30]. 

Madsen JM (2001) Toxins as weapons of mass destruction. A comparison and contrast with biological-warfare and chemical-warfare agents. Clin Lab Med 21 593-605... 

Mycotoxins may not be effective tools in biological warfare because acute toxic effects are not very pronounced for most of these toxins [29], But there... 

Despite ricin s extreme toxicity and utility as an agent of chemical/biological warfare, it is extremely difficult to limit the production of the toxin. Therefore, ricin is currently monitored as a Schedule 1 toxic chemical under the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development,... 

Mirocha, C.J., Pawlosky, R.A., Chetteqee, K., Watson, S., Hayes, A.W. (1983). Analysis for Fusarium toxins in various samples implicated in biological warfare in southeast Asia. J. Assoc. Off Anal. Chem. 66 485-99. 

Middlebrook, J., Franz, D. (2000). Botulism toxins. In Textbook of Military Medicine Medical Aspects of Chemical and Biological Warfare, pp. 643-54. Virtual Naval Hospital. 

Seto, Y., Maruko, H., Sekiguchi, H., Sano, Y., Yamashiro, S., Matsushita, K., Sekiguchi, H., Itoi, T., lura, K., Kanamori-Kataoka, M., Tsuge, K., Ohsawa, I. (2007). Development of an on-site detection method for chemical and biological warfare agents. J. Toxicol. Toxin Rev. 26 299-312. 

Franz D (1997) Defense against toxin weapons. In Sidell FR, Takafuji FT, Franz DR (eds.) Medical Aspects of Chemical and Biological Warfare (Textbook of Military... 

There also appear to be little data available on the health effects of longterm exposures to low-level concentrations of either chemical warfare agents or biological warfare agents or toxins. This information would be very helpful in establishing realistic standards for decontamination. 

Man has used biological weapons since the dawn of civilization, often for the purpose of warfare or assassination. Chapter 1 provides an overview of documented historical events involving the use of biological pathogens and toxins as weapons during warfare. A more exhaustive history of biological warfare is provided by Smart (1997) and Frischknecht (2003). 

Reactive Skin Decontamination Lotion (RSDL) has recently been approved for procurement by the U.S. military (F-Z-EM 2007). RSDL is currently marketed by E-Z-EM, Inc. and is a patented, broad spectrum, skin decontamination lotion that is used to remove or neutralize chemical threat agents and biological warfare agents such as trichothecene mycotoxin (T2 toxin), which can cause severe skin and eye irritation. RSDL was originally developed by the Canadian Defense Research Establishment and consists of 1.25 molar potassium 2,3-butanedione monoximate in poly-etheylene glycol monoethyl ethers with 10% w/v water (Sabourin et al. 2001 Lukey et al. 2004). 

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