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Chemical and Biological Threats to Public Safety
Published in Frank A. Barile, Barile’s Clinical Toxicology, 2019
Anthrax is an infectious disease caused by the spore-forming bacterium Bacillus anthracis. The organism is an obligate aerobe and facultative anaerobe. The highly resistant, prominent polypeptide capsule of the endospore renders B. anthracis immune to most methods of disinfection or natural processes of inactivation.† Thus the organism may be present in the soil for decades, occasionally infecting grazing goats, sheep, and cattle. When ingested, the hibernating, dehydrated, protected spores release viable bacteria on contact with gastrointestinal (GI) fluids. Human infection occurs by three routes of exposure to anthrax spores: cutaneous, GI, and inhalation. Although human cases of anthrax are infrequent in North America, the U.S. military views anthrax as a potential biological terrorist threat because of its high resistance and ease of communicability through the air.
Bacillus
Published in Dongyou Liu, Handbook of Foodborne Diseases, 2018
Depending on the route of infection, B. anthracis may cause (1) cutaneous anthrax (or hide porter's disease), with B. anthracis spores entering through cuts on the skin and manifesting as a boil-like skin lesion that eventually develops into a large, painless necrotic ulcer with a black center (eschar); (2) gastrointestinal anthrax due to consumption of anthrax-infected meat, and presenting with vomiting of blood, severe diarrhea, acute inflammation of the intestinal tract, and loss of appetite; and (3) pulmonary anthrax resulting from inhalation of B. anthracis spores, with initial infection in the lymph nodes in the chest (hemorrhagic mediastinitis), causing bloody fluid to accumulate in the chest cavity with fever, shortness of breath, cough, fatigue, and chills as main symptoms, and subsequent spread to the lungs, inducing symptoms of pneumonia (e.g., high fever, extreme shortness of breath, shock, and rapid death) [1].
An Overview of Microbes Pathogenic for Humans
Published in Nancy Khardori, Bench to Bedside, 2018
Eric Lehrer, James Radike, Nancy Khardori
Members of the Bacillus genus are notable for their ability to produce spores and their morphological appearance of chains under microscopy. Bacillus anthracis is the bacterium responsible for anthrax, which because of its air borne transmissibility has been used as an agent of bioterrorism. Anthrax can be transmitted by contact, via inhalation, and via the gastrointestinal tract. The cutaneous form of the disease tends to be the least severe; however, all 3 forms are capable of causing systemic disease and death. Bacillus cereus is known to be a cause of food poisoning due to the ingestion of preformed spores, which are able to survive in the harshest of environments. A common manifestation of B. cereus food poisoning is after the ingestion of reheated rice.
Vaccines against anthrax based on recombinant protective antigen: problems and solutions
Published in Expert Review of Vaccines, 2019
Olga A. Kondakova, Nikolai A. Nikitin, Ekaterina A. Evtushenko, Ekaterina M. Ryabchevskaya, Joseph G. Atabekov, Olga V. Karpova
Anthrax is a zoonotic disease induced by the gram-positive spore-forming bacterium Bacillus anthracis. The disease manifests itself in one of three forms – cutaneous, gastrointestinal or inhalation (pneumonic) – depending on the route of exposure. The inhalation form is the most severe, due to its systemic nature, rapid development and high mortality rate. Infection occurs once the spores are inhaled. An aerosol of B. anthracis spores poses a serious threat, as it may serve as a biological weapon and bio-terror agent. The B. anthracis spores are highly resilient and can survive for decades or even centuries under extreme temperature or chemical treatments. They can easily be aerosolized and disseminated [1,2]. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the USA (CDC) classifies В. anthracis as a category A agent on its bioterrorism agents list (highest priority) [3].
A new triple chimeric protein as a high immunogenic antigen against anthrax toxins: theoretical and experimental analyses
Published in Immunopharmacology and Immunotoxicology, 2019
Masoud Abdous, Sadegh Hasannia, Ali Hatef Salmanian, Seyed Shahryar Arab, Abbas Shali, Ghorban Ali Alizadeh, Afshin Hajizadeh, Abolfazl Khafri, Ammar Mohseni
Anthrax is an acute infection in human and animal caused by B. anthracis. Although anti-PA antibodies play a major role in protection against anthrax, it has been shown that both of anti-LF and anti-EF antibodies can play the same role [21]. Many studies demonstrated that chimeric antigen vaccines were more effective than single antigen vaccines [6,7].
Efficacy assessment of a triple anthrax chimeric antigen as a vaccine candidate in guinea pigs: challenge test with Bacillus anthracis 17 JB strain spores
Published in Immunopharmacology and Immunotoxicology, 2021
Masoud Abdous, Sadegh Hasannia, Ali Hatef Salmanian, Seyed-Shahryar Arab
Anthrax is an acute infection in humans and animals caused by B. anthracis. There are commercial anthrax vaccines consisting of Bacillus anthracis spore and protective antigen (PA) to prevent veterinary and human infection, respectively. Veterinary anthrax vaccine has many limitations. First, sick, weak, and young (under three months of age) cattle should not be vaccinated; second, the cattle should be slaughtered at least 3 weeks after vaccination (6 weeks for pregnant animals) and third, there is a possibility of anaphylactic reactions after vaccination of some sensitive livestock breeds requiring veterinary care and adrenaline injection [18]. Furthermore, the FDA approved human anthrax vaccine has a 92.5% efficacy for protection in both cutaneous and inhalational anthrax cases and may not protect all individuals [22]. Therefore, improved methods should be used in order to reduce or eliminate common problems of veterinary and human anthrax vaccines. Many studies found that fusion of different domains of anthrax antigens could be considered a more efficient potential candidate subunit vaccine compared to single antigen vaccines, and also showed the functional role of antibodies in protection against microbial infections [23,24]. Some studies showed that not only the protective antigen (PA) could play an important role in protection against anthrax but also the lethal factor (LF) and the edema factor (EF) stimulate the production of toxin neutralizing antibodies. In addition, PA with LF/EF separately or in the fusion form has synergistic effects as a potential subunit vaccine. It has been reported that a combination of antibodies against PA and LF increases the efficiency of the anthrax toxins neutralization capacity, offers 100% protection against B. anthracis challenges in immunized mice models, and has synergistic protective efficacy [4,25]. Moreover, EF plays a role in eliciting protective immunity against anthrax and should be included in the new generation of multi-component subunit vaccines [26]. EF neutralizing antibodies may cross-react with LF and further protect host cells from anthrax toxins because of the structural similarities between the first domains of EF (EFD1) and the first domains of LF (LFD1) [26]. Furthermore, neutralization of EF and PA could produce synergistic beneficial effects [27]. Previous studies found that chimeric protein produced by fuzing the protective antigen (PA)-binding domain of lethal factor (LFn) to dominant-negative inhibitory PA (DPA) called LFn-DPA. LFn-DPA exhibits a strong potency in rescuing mice from challenge with LeTx. Anti-LF monoclonal antibodies also could cross-react with EF [28,29]. Other study showed that a chimeric vaccine comprising LFD1 and the C-terminal domain of PA (PAD4) would offer a broader spectrum of protection compared to PA alone [4]. Another study displayed that the use of PA-LFD1 chimeric protein enhanced the humoral and cellular immune response in mice, and concluded that this protein could be a better alternative to the PA-based recombinant anthrax vaccine [12].