title: Toxins as Weapons: A Historical Review.
abstract: This review article summarizes the use of toxins as weapons dating from the First World War until today, when there is a high concern of possible terrorist attacks with weapons of mass destruction. All through modern history, military programs and terrorist groups have favored toxins because of their high toxicity. However, difficulties of extraction or synthesis, as well as effective dissemination to cause a large number of casualties, have been the most important drawbacks. Special emphasis is focused on ricin and botulinum toxin, the most important toxins that have attracted the attention of military programs and terrorist groups. Other toxins like trichothecenes, saxitoxin, and Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) are also discussed. A short section about anthrax is also included: Although Bacillus anthracis is considered a biological weapon rather than a toxin weapon, it produces a toxin that is finally responsible for the anthrax disease.
authors.affiliation: Chemical Defense Department, Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Defense School, Army Engineer School, Hoyo de Manzanares, Madrid, Spain. renepita@telefonica.net.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pita
authors.affiliation: Department of Toxicology and Pharmacology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Romero
keywords: Bioterrorism; botulinum toxin; ricin; toxin weapons