(Credit:
Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation)
Bird flu, swine flu, anthrax; and now add Hendra--a lethal virus that resides in bat urine and horse spit--to the ever increasing list of barnyard threats.
The U.S. and other countries are investing in Hendra virus research because they fear it may be used in biological warfare, Dr. Peter Reid told horse owners and "bat carers" at the Queensland Horse Council Hendra virus conference last week. And Dr. Reid should know--he was the veterinarian involved in the first known Hendra outbreak, which killed prominent Queensland horse trainer Vic Rail and 14 of his horses in 1994.
Back then, there was speculation of foul play until the Australian Animal Health Laboratory isolated and identified what it said was a new virus unreported anywhere else in the world.
This bug, along with and its even deadlier relative the Nipah virus, is so virulent it's considered a U.S. homeland security threat. There is no effective treatment or vaccine for Hendra or Nipah. (An Ausie-U.S. team recently developed a serum that protects ferrets exposed to the Nipah virus.) Thankfully, it has to date occurred only in Australia. The latter has killed hundreds in Malaysia, Bangladesh, and India, while the former has downed four out of the seven people infected in Queensland, Australia--a 57 percent mortality rate.(PDF)
So far it appears that Hendra is transmitted from bats to horses and from horses to humans. Nipah transfers from bats to pigs and from pigs to humans, but there have also been cases of bat to human and human to human transmissions, according to experts. (Again with the swine?)
Still, although contained for now Down Under, it's one of the top items to justify a new $575 million National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility Kansas State University campus in Manhattan, Kansas.
The new facility would replace the Plum Island Animal Disease Center and would be dedicated to the research of "high-consequence biological threats involving zoonotic and foreign animal diseases."
Specifically, the new facility would provide a BSL-4 level space, which affords the protection necessary for researchers to study life-threatening microorganisms like Nipah and Hendra for which there is no known vaccine or therapy.
So, apart from the $575 million tab, is there reason for concern?
Dr. Reid told the Australian Associated Press that with the increased outbreaks in the past four years "it was his gut feeling that the virus was becoming more contagious".
"Bats are quite accessible and in the wrong hands it can pose quite a threat," he said.
What's worse than malaria? Malaria with a syphilis shooter. But seriously--a Canadian company has just introduced several "rapid tests" that can instantly detect various combinations of tropical and sexually transmitted diseases.
(Credit:
MedMira)
MedMira this week launched its expanded line of Multiplo rapid tests at the U.S. military's Advanced Technology Applications for Casualty Combat Care Conference in St. Pete's Beach, Fla.
The Multiplo tests will be used to diagnose conditions such as HIV, hepatitis B and C, syphilis, malaria and dengue fever in various combinations. This combo feature enhanced by, in some cases, instant results, is an industry first, according to the Halifax, Nova Scotia-based developer and manufacturer.
The Multiplo tests use a patented rapid flow-through technology that relies on highly specific antigen-antibody reactions to detect specific disease biomarkers, according to the company literature (PDF).
The procedure calls for adding a specimen to the test cartridge, where it flows through a special membrane coated with disease-specific antigens or antibodies that captures the corresponding biomarker in the specimen.
If the specimen contains the target antibodies or antigens, the results can be view and interpreted immediately, according to MedMira.
The tests are unique in that they can detect multiple diseases using a single cartridge, the company claims. "Our Multiplo line of rapid tests for HIV, Hepatitis B and C use the platform's advanced capabilities to deliver three test results using one test cartridge and one drop of specimen."
Instant results for HIV and dengue? Avoid the rush, book your tropical vacation now.
(Credit:
CDC)
A British company continues to offer a portable decontamination device that should come as breath of fresh air to a flu-weary public.
In fact the unit duplicates the ability of "outdoor fresh air" to destroy a wide range of airborne viruses and bacteria including the H5N1, influenza, and SARS, all within minutes of contact, according to Tri--Air Developments. "It's almost so good that nobody is going to believe it," admits Martin Wyatt, of the Buildings Research Establishment, a quasi-government agency that has been involved with the development.
The London based company claims it has already produced a prototype compact enough to fit in the ventilation systems of trains and aircraft (10 inches by 5 inches), and expects to follow up with a personal belt, clip-on unit, according to Tri-Air technical director Alan Mole.
The biotechnology device generates a continuous flow of hydroxyl radicals, same as those found in natural abundance in the great outdoors, (especially in forested mountain areas.) These hydroxyl radicals, when combined with a couple of other decontamination technologies--i.e. non-thermal plasma and ultraviolet catalysis-- make quick work of flu and cold viruses, boasting a 99.9999 percent kill rate or "100 percent more effective" than anything else currently on the market, according to the company.
"Our way of life is continually threatened by viruses and bacteria," according to a company press release. "When someone sneezes the particles of mucus ejected are full of viruses: the hydroxyl radicals from the unit condense onto these particles and rapidly destroy the viruses even in close human proximity."
The technology can also be deployed as standalone units or incorporated within large ventilation systems of commercial and public buildings. And, it's safe to use to operate "whilst people are present," according to the company.
(Credit:
CDC)
As anybody who's watched the movie Outbreak knows, when it comes to raging epidemics, the military will get involved at some point, the question is: in what way (PDF)?
To answer that, the Department of Defense (DOD) has commissioned the development of a simulation-based planning and training software application--a game, in other words, albeit a "serious" one--to help it to prepare for the next influenza pandemic.
The game will allow health care professionals and the military to recognize early signs of an outbreak, practice response tactics, and plot "local mitigation strategies" to limit the spread of disease, according to developer SimQuest, a technology-assisted education and training company.
"The world is due for an influenza pandemic, with the last one occurring in 1968, and there is a severe shortage of caregivers experienced in pandemic flu response," said Bob Waddington of SimQuest. "Unfortunately, an experienced caregiver from the last outbreak would likely be over 60 years old or retired. Our goal is to create an engaging training application for medical treatment facility administrators and supervisors, as well as the military, which can increase readiness and minimize the potential for chaos during the next pandemic outbreak of influenza."
The consequences of a worldwide pandemic are hard to predict because the biological characteristics of the virus are unknown, but the 1918 Spanish flu killed more American soldiers than World War I. A pandemic in the United States could result in 20-35 percent of the population becoming ill, according to government estimates (PDF).
The role of the military will include supporting domestic infrastructure and maintaining law and order, according to the DOD Implementation Plan for Pandemic Influenza. No mention of fuel air bombs.
Aedes aegypti
(Credit: CDC)The world may be gaining ground in its war against the mosquito, specifically Aedes aegypti- the planet's main vector for dengue-thanks to a new trap developed by the US Army.
The Tiger Trap, created and marketed under license by Spring Star, Inc. exploits the Aedes' "irrepressible urge" to lay their eggs mainly on the sides of water filled containers. This characteristic allows them to be second guessed and lured into contact with a tiny dose (1 millionth of a kilogram) of lethal insecticide. Not only is this an improvement over the conventional method of spraying insecticide semi-randomly and hoping the insect flies through it; it's also cheaper and more environmentally friendly, according to Spring Star.
"The result is a safe, inexpensive, effective device that targets, with minimal insecticide or environmental impact, the disease-carrying female before she can bite another person and transmit disease," according to a company statement.
Dengue, also known and forever remembered as "break-bone fever" by those who have survived it, is a severe, viral, flu-like illness that can range from a nonspecific viral syndrome to a severe and fatal hemorrhagic fever. Up to 50 million people are infected annually, with 15-20,000 dying.
The patented method was developed jointly by the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, the US Army Medical Research and Materiel Command and the Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine. The resulting prototype has already been tested in numerous, well-documented field trials in Brazil, Peru, Bangladesh and Thailand, according to the Woodinville, WA based company.
(Credit:
SHSU)
In wars of yore, the slit-trench was state-of-the art field sanitation, filled to the brim and then maybe backfilled; but today, when even losers are litigious, it's not a good idea to leave that kind of mess.
Now, the Texas Research Institute for Environmental Studies (TRIES) at Sam Houston State University and PCDworks, a technology innovation firm, have developed a self-sustaining, portable and "smart" wastewater treatment system that promises to take over where the porta-potty leaves off. (PDF)
Housed in the ubiquitous 40-foot shipping container, the Deployable Aqueous Aerobic Bioreactor (DAAB,) can convert a battalion's worth of wastewater (the effluent from approximately 600 soldiers) to something that meets Environmental Protection Agencystandards within 24 to 48 hours, according to TRIES.
A self-contained, bio-digestion unit uses specially selected bacteria to remove organic and inorganic materials from the waste, and then releases "clean" water into the environment "with no harmful consequences." The system is completely autonomous. It adjusts flow and fluid levels automatically, and can dispatch reports and alerts, and be turned on and off via the Internet.
It runs on common household 120-volt, and while the treated runoff is not potable (yet), it's good enough for other uses like irrigation, according to PCDworks.
"The potential implications of this technology are huge," SHSU's Sabin Holland, told Waste World magazine. "We can increase the health and safety of our troops overseas by eliminating the need for unreliable wastewater treatment contractors, clean up Katrina-type disaster sites more rapidly, and deliver safer water supplies to third world countries."
DAAB units are expected to be deployed to Iraq in 2010--another reason to stick around.
As much as you may miss it, you'll have to face the fact that donating blood may become obsolete someday soon.
The U.S. military is seeking an automated culture and packaging system that could produce a steady supply of universal donor red blood cells right on the battlefield, without resorting to needles and the human filling-stations (PDF).
DARPA has awarded a $1.95 million contract to Arteriocyte, a Cleveland company that's experimenting with a technology developed at Johns Hopkins that enables the rapid expansion of umbilical cord blood. The company wants to adapt it to a manufacturing technology that will feed the military's thirst for universal donor red blood units. The technology, called Nanex, uses a nanofiber-based structure that mimics bone marrow in which blood cells multiply, according to the company.
The military envisions a "fieldable" in-theater, culture-manufacturing system that would take hematopoietic progenitor cells and automatically covert those into hundreds of prepackaged, ready-to-be-infused RBC units. This process, called "blood pharming," would eliminate much of storage, transport and the donor blood type and health limitations that make RBC resupply such a challenge.
Red blood cells, which make up 40 percent of the average human's blood volume, are the most transfused blood product for trauma care, with 40,000 RBC units used in the United States every day, according to the Red Cross. A unit is 220 ml. or about a cup.
DU colonization and transformation by fungus.
(Credit: University of Dundee)Long after the shooting has stopped, radioactive dust particles dispersed by exploding, depleted uranium (DU) artillery and tank shells leave the contemporary battlefield a dangerous place--and there's been little hope of decontamination, until now.
Researchers from Scotland's University of Dundee have discovered that common backyard fungi may be the key to cleaning and reclaiming DU-contaminated soil in places like Iraq and Bosnia.
(Credit:
University of Dundee)
The team found that free-living and plant symbiotic (mycorrhizal) fungi can colonize DU metallic surfaces and geochemically transform them into uranyl phosphate minerals, stabilizing the uranium, reports a study published in the journal Current Biology.
"The fungal-produced minerals are capable of long-term uranium retention, so this may help prevent uptake of uranium by plants, animals, and microbes," said Professor Geoffrey Gadd, leader of Dundee's research team. "It might also prevent the spent uranium from leaching out from the soil," he said.
Although less radioactive, DU fallout has the same chemotoxicity as uranium-235 and poses threats to humans that include nerve damage, "kidney toxicity," and lung cancer. And it can hang around for decades.
Fungi cleanup would be very low-tech, Gadd told New Scientist. Just add moisture and nutrients to the soil, which helps the fungi to flourish.
"You can go to just about any soil, and you'd find fungi that would lock away uranium," he said. "You could literally pick them from your own back garden."
If you want to know staphylococcal enterotoxin from streptococcal exotoxin, consider adding the Borden Institute's latest edition of Medical Aspects of Biological Warfare to your nightstand.
This scholarly tome is an authoritative update on the weaponization of biological agents. A distinguished group of authors take us from familiar standbys (anthrax, plague, smallpox) through the potential horrors of inadvertent or deliberate release of "oranimal"--bioengineed plant organisms--and onto the "arbitrary use of human embryonic tissue in research."
An update from the 1997 edition was required because of the increased threat posed by biological warfare and terrorism, according to the Borden Institute, a branch of the U.S. Army Medical Department Center & School. "A decade later, the complexity of the threat has increased beyond the boundaries of state-sponsored programs and to the terrorist use of novel pathogens," said Army Colonel George W. Korch, of the Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases.
Developing biological weapons is simple, at least in concept, according to Chapter 25. Just build a virus that evades the body's immune defenses, reaches a target organ or tissue quickly, and then kills you; or better yet, infects you with a severe, highly communicable and lingering illness.
Man's increasing knowledge of specific human genetic defects or vulnerabilities and his growing skill in replicating them, plus his ability to modify microorganisms or toxins for increased virulence and infectivity, will make for an interesting century, the book posits.
Other topics include the history of biological weapons ("From Poisoned Darts to Intentional Epidemics"); food, waterborne, and agricultural diseases; epidemiology of bio warfare and bioterrorism; organisms and toxins; laboratory identification; consequence and casualty management; countermeasures and biosafety; ethical and legal considerations in biodefense research and emerging infectious diseases. All a must-read on the subway ride home.
Medical Aspects of Biological Warfare comes extensively annotated and includes a fantastic bibliography but skips the gruesome illustrations other treatises can't seem to resist. The Borden Institute publishes a wide range of illustrated textbooks on art and science of military medicine; available in hardback, as well as on its Web site.
(Credit:
Universal Detection Technology )
What happens in Vegas could be contagious; but don't worry, despite the recent ricin scare on the Strip, your chances of dying from exotic poison or a bio-engineered infection are pretty slim - even at the buffet.
Still, companies are betting their R&D budgets that the government will ante up to protect you from the toxin de jour. Their odds are good. Universal Detection Technology received a rush of orders for its ricin detection kit after a man was found in critical condition in a Las Vegas motel room with a case of suspected ricin poisoning.
"Although no direct links to terrorism has been yet drawn in this recent case in Las Vegas, it is important to note that hazardous materials in the hands of domestic terrorists can be a very serious threat," said UDT CEO Jacques Tizabi. His company stands "positioned to capitalize on opportunities related to Homeland Security."
Not long ago, super staph (AKA Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus) replaced "flesh eating bacteria" in the public's imagination as the most gruesome of killer bugs. For that, UDT licensed and commercialized a technology designed to detect microbial buildup in closed-loop environments like the International Space Station. It's now marketed as the Microbial Event Monitor, a kind of smoke detector for airborne bacterias like super staph.
Let's get medieval. Salt Lake City based Idaho Technology (ITI) sells FDA approved kits that detect plague (Yersinia pestis) and Tularemia (rabbit fever). Both are classified by the CDC as Category A, bioterrorism national security risks. Relax, even the company admits it's highly unlikely you'll step in something and contract a naturally occurring dose of either. But ITI scored big when DOD selected its Joint Biological Agent Identification and Diagnostic System (JBAIDS) as "the" platform for I.D.ing pathogens associated with bioterrorism.
Next up ITI will seek FDA approval for a brucellosis detection kit. (It already has anthrax covered.)
Now for the big guns, Ebola and Marburg: Wonks from the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases have developed virus-like particles (VLPs) that protect monkeys 100 percent against both Ebola and Marburg and they're scaling up production in hopes of beginning clinical trials in humans in a few years, according to Science Daily.
You are more likely to be eaten by a Nile crocodile than bleeding out your eyeballs from Ebola, but why take chances?
(Credit:
CDC Public Health Image Library)
