Recent Advances in the Prevention of Bioterrorism Attacks

Abstract

Since the September 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and other locations in the United States, a primary concern for the global community has been to heighten homeland security and thereby prevent terrorist attacks. Additional attacks following the tragedy in 2001 across the world included mailed envelopes containing viable Bacillus anthracis or Anthrax spores that caused 5 deaths in the US. As a countermeasure to bioterrorism attacks, the US implemented the “Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act� in 2002. This was recently strengthened by the passing of the “Food Safety Modernization Act� of 2010. Both laws are intended to provide resources to oversight agencies for tighter regulation and control of food entering and being distributed in the US. It raises the question to what degree a nation can prepare for a potential bioterrorism attack on the food supply. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have identified several biotoxins that could be used for dispersion. Many of these agents are listed in categories A (including anthrax, botulism, smallpox, and the plague) and B (including strains of Salmonella and Escherichia, Cholera, and Ricin) of the CDC list of potential bioterrorism agents that can be dispersed with relative ease and result in high morbidity and mortality rates. A major concern is the preparedness of public health authorities and the timeliness of the response and recognition of an actual incident. A recent risk analysis of the response to a bioterrorism incident involving Salmonella or Escherichia bacteria concluded that it would take between 3-5 days and at least 2 confirmed cases to detect and contain the source.