[Diva Betsy Ross]

I heard Spep say there were other ways to get anthrax.. does anyone know of other ways?

[Tree of Liberty]

I believe working alot with livestock increases risk of natural exposure.

[Hang'emAll]

Inhalation anthrax is called the sheep shearer's disease.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Wednesday October 3 1:35 PM ET Treatment Thwarts Deadly Anthrax Toxin in Rats-- By Keith Mulvihill

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Using an animal model, scientists have discovered a way to inactivate the lethal toxin produced by the anthrax bacterium, according to a new report.

``The findings provide a potential route to therapy of anthrax that could complement antibiotics,'' principal investigator Dr. R. John Collier of Harvard Medical School (news - web sites) in Boston, Massachusetts, told Reuters Health.

Anthrax infection--lately in the news because of its potential for use as a biological weapon--can be contracted by humans through the skin or by inhalation.

Antibiotics can treat the infection, but they must be given quickly. And while they may kill the anthrax bacterium, they cannot inactivate the lethal toxin it produces.

By the time symptoms of anthrax contracted by inhalation have appeared, Collier explained, it is generally too late to rescue an individual with antibiotics, because he or she will succumb to the toxin the bacteria has already produced.

``This candidate therapeutic offers a way to inactivate the toxin,'' he said.

Anthrax releases three nontoxic proteins that assemble themselves into the toxin. Collier and his colleagues have identified a protein, known as a polyvalent inhibitor, that blocks this assembly. Their findings are published in the October issue of the journal Nature Biotechnology.

``To date, we have tested the polyvalent inhibitor of toxin action by mixing it with a potentially lethal dose of the lethal toxin and injecting the mixture into rats,'' Collier told Reuters Health.

Normally, the lethal dose of toxin will kill the animal within 90 minutes. In the presence of the polyvalent inhibitor, the animals survived and showed no symptoms, he explained.

``This finding supports the notion that this inhibitor could be used to block toxin action in infected humans and rescue them,'' Collier stated.

According to the researcher, inhalation anthrax is the most deadly form of the disease. It is contracted by inhaling anthrax spores--durable, hard-shelled ``seeds'' containing the bacterium.

The spores begin to grow in the lungs and enter the bloodstream, where they produce the anthrax toxin. The toxin acts by killing certain immune system cells that normally guard against bacterial invaders. In so doing it also causes changes in metabolism that lead to death, Collier explained.

SOURCE: Nature Biotechnology 2001;19:958-961.

[WindMinstrel]

yes, you can get anthrax from working with the hair or hides of infected animals. The most common victims of Anthrax is wool workers. In fact, the non-medical name of Anthrax is "Woolsorter's Disease".

A good resource on Anthrax and other biowar stuff is emergency.com -- an article on anthrax at http://www.emergency.com/anthrax.htm

[ableChair]

Anthrax is actually divided into three different variants; each defined by it's contraction vector. Each type comes from a bacterium called Bacillus anthracis. The three types are intestinal, cutaneous, and inhalation anthrax. The CDC has confirmed that the man in florida has Inhalation anthrax, the version usually fatal. Mention of a trip to N. Carolina about a week ago by this man suggests that it was contracted in N. Carolina, but this is by no means certain. Also, mention was made of his drinking from an open stream, which would indicate a cutaneous vector, not inahalation, so I don't give that much credence.
To answer your question then, it can be contracted directly from contaminated air and in such a case would result in inhalation anthrax. If in direct physical contact with animals, one may contract it cutaneously, the version that results in about a 20% death rate if untreated. Treated it can usually be survived. If anthrax is in food and the food is eaten uncooked it may result in intestinal anthrax. Death occurs in 25 to 60% of cases, depending on the sophistication of medical treatment.
Alternately, inahalation anthrax can be contracted by breathing air in the vicinity of meat or animal hides infected with anthrax spores. This is the most common vector for an 'innocent' infection. Hunters are especially vulnerable in the presence of an infected animal for either the intestinal or inahalation version, but especially for inhalation anthrax. In such cases it is most likely contracted when dressing the animal. The CDC is investigating this possible explanation. We do know (from press conference with CDC doctor) that this man was an outdoorsman.
Weaponization of anthrax, and thus contraction via aersol (inhalation anthrax), is extremely difficult to accomplish and tons of such aersol will infect only a few victims. The best mechanism would probably be to put spores in the food supply, thus increasing the likelihood of inhalation anthrax when people breathe air in it's vicinity (preparing it for cooking) If this is suspected, use of an appropriate gas mask and gloves (or MOPP gear) in food preparation (done outdoors) is indicated.
All information provided above is public knowledge.

[DrCarl]

They're saying the man was a heavy duty outdoorsman. Well, so am I and everyone I know and we ain't got no anthrax!

[Demidog]

Anthrax can be passed from animal to human apparently. This doesn't mean that it was spread intentionally. And in fact it cannot be transmitted from human to human from what I understand.