The weapon potential of a microbe.
The designation of a microbe as a potential biological weapon poses the vexing question of how such a decision is made given the many pathogenic microbes that cause disease. Analysis of the properties of microbes that are currently considered biological weapons against humans revealed no obvious relationship to virulence, except that all are pathogenic for humans. Notably, the weapon potential of a microbe rather than its pathogenic properties or virulence appeared to be the major consideration when categorizing certain agents as biological weapons. In an effort to standardize the assessment of the risk that is posed by microbes as biological warfare agents using the basic principles of microbial communicability (defined here as a parameter of transmission) and virulence, a simple formula is proposed for estimating the weapon potential of a microbe.
Casadevall
Arturo
A
Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, 1300 Morris Park Ave, Bronx, NY 10461, USA. casadeva@aecom.yu.edu
Pirofski
Liise-anne
LA
D001419:Bacteria / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission; D001694:Biological Warfare; D023482:Bioterrorism; D018562:Disease Transmission, Infectious; D005658:Fungi / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D006801:Humans; D008433:Mathematics; D009181:Mycoses / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission; D014774:Virulence; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology; D014780:Viruses / Q000472:pathogenicity*