Publications
| Title | Abstract | Year(sorted ascending) Filter | PMID Filter |
|---|
| constitutive expression of protective antigen gene of bacillus anthracis in escherichia coli. | the fatal bacterial infection caused by inhalation of the bacillus anthracis spores results from the synthesis of protein toxins-protective antigen (pa), lethal factor (lf), and edema factor (ef)--by the bacterium. pa is the target-cell binding protein and is common to the two effector molecules, lf and ef, which exert their toxic effects once they are translocated to the cytosol by pa. pa is the major component of vaccines against anthrax since it confers protective immunity. the large-scale pr ... | 2001 | 11327699 |
| microbiology. fighting anthrax with a mutant toxin. | 2001 | 11330322 | |
| hospital preparedness for victims of chemical or biological terrorism. | this study examined hospital preparedness for incidents involving chemical or biological weapons. | 2001 | 11344876 |
| mowed, a computer program to rapidly deconvolute low resolution electrospray liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry runs to determine component molecular weights. | a computer program is described that can rapidly process low-resolution electrospray liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (lc/ms) for peptides and proteins and assign molecular weights for observed components. the program first analyzes individual scans using a deconvolution algorithm similar to that previously described by zhang and marshall. results for the entire run are then sorted by mass and those values found in adjacent scans are grouped together. the list of found components can also ... | 2001 | 11349958 |
| quantitative pathology of inhalational anthrax i: quantitative microscopic findings. | forty-one cases of documented inhalational anthrax from the sverdlovsk epidemic of 1979 traced to release of aerosols of bacillus anthracis at a secret biologic-agent production facility were evaluated by semiquantitative histopathologic analysis of tissue concentrations of organisms, inflammation, hemorrhage, and other lesions in the mediastinum, mediastinal lymph nodes, bronchi, lungs, heart, spleen, liver, intestines, kidneys, adrenal glands, and central nervous system. these data were correl ... | 2001 | 11353060 |
| role of residues constituting the 2beta1 strand of domain ii in the biological activity of anthrax protective antigen. | anthrax toxin consists of three proteins, protective antigen, lethal factor and oedema factor. a proteolytically activated 63-kda fragment of protective antigen binds lethal factor/oedema factor and translocates them into the cytosol. domain ii of protective antigen has been implicated in membrane insertion and channel formation. in the present study, alanine substitutions in 14 consecutive residues of the 2beta1 strand that are highly homologous to the putative membrane interacting segment of c ... | 2001 | 11356563 |
| toxemic shock, hematuria, hypokalemia, and hypoproteinemia in a case of cutaneous anthrax. | a 20-year-old woman who had daily contact with domestic herbivores presented with a painless and pruritic lesion in her neck; the lesion ulcerated to a black necrotic eschar from which bacillus anthracis grew. rapidly expanding edema at the site of the ulcer was followed by shock, hematuria, hypokalemia, and hypoproteinemia. the latter symptoms - unusual for cutaneous anthrax - responded to intravenous penicillin therapy. | 2001 | 11373695 |
| when anthrax was a delaware valley disease: dr. herman gold's experience with cutaneous anthrax. | 2001 | 11381482 | |
| pulmonary manifestations of bioterrorism. | along with smallpox, inhalation anthrax and pneumonic plague are among the diseases most likely to be spread by biowarfare, either from a rogue nation or terrorist group. neither anthrax nor plague has been seen by many pulmonary (or any other) physicians in the united states. this article summarizes these two diseases as pulmonary manifestations of bioterrorism and discusses the possibility of avian influenza as a potential respiratory pathogen in biowarfare. it is hoped that phyisicians will n ... | 2001 | 11384555 |
| a dominant-negative therapy for anthrax. | 2001 | 11385497 | |
| the role of antibodies to bacillus anthracis and anthrax toxin components in inhibiting the early stages of infection by anthrax spores. | vaccines which are efficacious against anthrax, such as the human vaccine, anthrax vaccine absorbed (ava), contain the protective antigen (pa) component of the anthrax toxins as the major protective immunogen. although ava protects against inhalational anthrax, the immune responses to and role in protection of pa and possibly other antigens have yet to be fully elucidated. sera from animals immunized with a toxin-producing, unencapsulated live vaccine strain of bacillus anthracis have been repor ... | 2001 | 11390699 |
| effect of ph on stability of anthrax lethal factor: correlation between denaturation and activity. | anthrax is caused by gram positive bacterium bacillus anthracis. pathogenesis is result of production of three protein components, protective antigen (pa), lethal factor (lf), and edema factor (ef). pa in combination with lf (lethal toxin) is lethal to animals, while pa in combination with ef (edema toxin), causes edema. pa, lf, and ef are very thermolabile. differential scanning calorimetry (dsc) was used to unravel the energetics of lf denaturation as a function of ph ranging from 7.8 to 5.5. ... | 2001 | 11396937 |
| protection against anthrax lethal toxin challenge by genetic immunization with a plasmid encoding the lethal factor protein. | the ability of genetic vaccination to protect against a lethal challenge of anthrax toxin was evaluated. balb/c mice were immunized via gene gun inoculation with eucaryotic expression vector plasmids encoding either a fragment of the protective antigen (pa) or a fragment of lethal factor (lf). plasmid pclf4 contains the n-terminal region (amino acids [aa] 10 to 254) of bacillus anthracis lf cloned into the pci expression plasmid. plasmid pcpa contains a biologically active portion (aa 175 to 764 ... | 2001 | 11401993 |
| application of recovery tests in the validation of immunoassays for assessing the immunogenicity of b. anthracis pa vaccine. | in the quantitative assessment of polyclonal serum antibodies, the complex composition and characteristics of the analyte population (serum antibodies) restricts the capability of constructing appropriately defined calibration standards. this fact limits the application of the conservative recovery tests to the validation of immunoassays aimed at determining serum antibody levels. the present report describes a modification of recovery tests that overcomes this impediment. the modified approach ... | 2001 | 11417105 |
| cutaneous anthrax in eastern turkey. | anthrax, caused by the spore-forming bacterium bacillus anthracis, is rarely seen in industrial nations but is common in developing countries. cutaneous anthrax (ca), the most common form of the disease, accounts for 95% of cases and usually develops on exposed sites. this study reviews the clinical and laboratory findings of 21 patients diagnosed with ca during 2 separate epidemics in the van region of turkey. all patients had a history of direct contact with infected cattle. the patients, aged ... | 2001 | 11419020 |
| anthrax: an overview within the indian subcontinent. | 2001 | 11422531 | |
| use of long-range repetitive element polymorphism-pcr to differentiate bacillus anthracis strains. | the genome of bacillus anthracis is extremely monomorphic, and thus individual strains have often proven to be recalcitrant to differentiation at the molecular level. long-range repetitive element polymorphism-pcr (lr rep-pcr) was used to differentiate various b. anthracis strains. a single pcr primer derived from a repetitive dna element was able to amplify variable segments of a bacterial genome as large as 10 kb. we were able to characterize five genetically distinct groups by examining 105 b ... | 2001 | 11425716 |
| cutaneous anthrax in two siblings. | 2001 | 11450393 | |
| cowpox virus in a 12-year-old boy: rapid identification by an orthopoxvirus-specific polymerase chain reaction. | although smallpox was eradicated 20 years ago, other members of the genus orthopoxvirus (opv), such as cowpox virus (cpxv) or monkeypox virus, are still a threat to humans. because human cpxv infection is rare, it is seldom suspected on clinical grounds only. we report a boy who presented with two necrotic ulcers with surrounding erythema. infection with opv was suspected, as antibiotic treatment had not produced improvement and smears were negative for anthrax. an opv was isolated and an opv-sp ... | 2001 | 11453925 |
| palbebral anthrax. | anthrax is a rare infection transmitted to humans from animals or animal products. in cutaneous anthrax it may produce lesions of the eyelids which can lead to cicatricial ectropion. | 2001 | 11456020 |
| detection of anthrax vaccine virulence factors by polymerase chain reaction. | in italy, an attenuated bacillus anthracis strain, named 'carbosap', is used for immunization against ovine and bovine anthrax. analysis on 'carbosap', sterne vaccine strain f34 and pasteur vaccine strain ss104, were performed using primers specific for the sequences, encoding the toxic factors, located on plasmids pxo1 and pxo2 and primers specific for the chromosome. the results obtained from polymerase chain reaction (pcr) assay revealed the presence of both plasmids pxo1 and pxo2 in 'carbosa ... | 2001 | 11457547 |
| anthrax in an infant. | 2001 | 11463966 | |
| enhanced expression of the recombinant lethal factor of bacillus anthracis by fed-batch culture. | high cell density cultivation has been one of the most effective ways to increase cell as well as the product yields. the structural gene for the 90-kda lethal factor (lf) isolated from bacillus anthracis was expressed as fusion protein with 6x histidine residues under the transcriptional regulation of the t5 promoter in escherichia coli. various strategies were tried to scale up the expression of the recombinant lethal factor by bioprocess optimization using fed batch culture technique in a 14 ... | 2001 | 11467855 |
| evaluation of spore extraction and purification methods for selective recovery of viable bacillus anthracis spores. | to investigate methods of improving anthrax spore detection with plet. | 2001 | 11472515 |
| bacillus spore inactivation methods affect detection assays. | detection of biological weapons is a primary concern in force protection, treaty verification, and safeguarding civilian populations against domestic terrorism. one great concern is the detection of bacillus anthracis, the causative agent of anthrax. assays for detection in the laboratory often employ inactivated preparations of spores or nonpathogenic simulants. this study uses several common biodetection platforms to detect b. anthracis spores that have been inactivated by two methods and comp ... | 2001 | 11472945 |
| utilization of the rpob gene as a specific chromosomal marker for real-time pcr detection of bacillus anthracis. | the potential use of bacillus anthracis as a weapon of mass destruction poses a threat to humans, domesticated animals, and wildlife and necessitates the need for a rapid and highly specific detection assay. we have developed a real-time pcr-based assay for the specific detection of b. anthracis by taking advantage of the unique nucleotide sequence of the b. anthracis rpob gene. variable region 1 of the rpob gene was sequenced from 36 bacillus strains, including 16 b. anthracis strains and 20 ot ... | 2001 | 11472954 |
| susceptibility of irradiated mice to bacillus anthracis sterne by the intratracheal route of infection. | the susceptibility of sublethally irradiated mice to pulmonary infection with bacillus anthracis was investigated in a mouse model. female b6d2f1/j mice were challenged intratracheally with 4.3 x 10(6), 3.7 x 10(7) and 4.4 x 10(8) cfu of b. anthracis sterne spores 4 days after 60co gamma-radiation at a dose of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7 gy. bacterial cultures were obtained from lung, spleen homogenates and heart blood. a biphasic mode of mortality was observed, with a constant response of up to 3 ... | 2001 | 11478674 |
| passive transfer of protection against bacillus anthracis infection in a murine model. | passive transfer of lymphocytes and sera from mice immunised using two different formulations containing recombinant protective antigen (rpa) have been used to further elucidate the mechanism of protection against bacillus anthracis infection. the results demonstrated that an antibody response maybe important in protection against b. anthracis infection, under the conditions tested. the results provide further data for the development of an improved anthrax vaccine. | 2001 | 11483266 |
| rapid purification of recombinant anthrax-protective antigen under nondenaturing conditions. | anthrax-protective antigen is the central moiety of the anthrax toxin complex that mediates the entry of the other two toxin components, lethal factor and edema factor into the cells. it is also the main immunogen of the cell-free vaccine against anthrax. however, in addition to pa, the vaccine contains trace amounts of other culture-derived proteins that contribute to the side effects of the vaccine like pain, edema, erythrema, etc. thus there is a need to develop high-resolution purification m ... | 2001 | 11485300 |
| [current threat: anthrax]. | 2001 | 11496783 | |
| ct and mr findings of anthrax meningoencephalitis: report of two cases and review of the literature. | anthrax meningoencephalitis is a rare complication of infection with bacillus anthracis and generally produces a hemorrhagic meningoencephalitis. we present the ct and mr imaging findings in two patients demonstrating subarachnoid, intracerebral, and intraventricular hemorrhage with leptomeningeal enhancement. | 2001 | 11498418 |
| participation of residue f552 in domain iii of the protective antigen in the biological activity of anthrax lethal toxin. | the protective antigen (pa) component of anthrax toxin translocates the catalytic moieties lethal factor (lf) and edema factor (ef) into the cytosol. the proteolytically activated 63 kda form of pa (pa63) has the ability to oligomerize and bind lf/ef. pa has four distinct domains performing specialized functions; whereas the function of domains i, ii and iv has been well characterized, domain iii has no known role in the biological activity of pa. here we report the role of amino acid residues l ... | 2001 | 11501759 |
| the legacy of robert koch. | 2001 | 11520262 | |
| in vitro correlate of immunity in a rabbit model of inhalational anthrax. | a serological correlate of vaccine-induced immunity was identified in the rabbit model of inhalational anthrax. animals were inoculated intramuscularly at 0 and 4 weeks with varying doses of anthrax vaccine adsorbed (ava) ranging from a human dose to a 1:256 dilution in phosphate-buffered saline (pbs). at 6 and 10 weeks, both the quantitative anti-protective antigen (pa) igg elisa and the toxin-neutralizing antibody (tna) assays were used to measure antibody levels to pa. rabbits were aerosol-ch ... | 2001 | 11535328 |
| anthrax. | bacillus anthracis was shown to be the etiological agent of anthrax by r. koch and l. pasteur at the end of the nineteenth century. the concepts on which medical microbiology are based arose from their work on this bacterium. the link between plasmids and major virulence factors of b. anthracis was not discovered until the 1980s. the three toxin components are organized in two a-b type toxins, and the bacilli are covered by an antiphagocytic polyglutamic capsule. structure-function analysis of t ... | 2001 | 11544370 |
| bioterrorism: a threat for which we are ill prepared. | of the weapons of mass destruction, the biological ones are the most feared and bioterrorism has become one of the most vicious threats to civilized society in recent times. biological weapons have been sporadically used for centuries. despite international regulations, there has been a global re-emergence of the threat of biological warfare. as many as 17 countries are suspected of either including or developing biological agents in their weapons programmes. in the past decade, a number of terr ... | 2001 | 11547531 |
| purification of anthrax edema factor from escherichia coli and identification of residues required for binding to anthrax protective antigen. | the structural gene for anthrax edema factor (ef) was expressed in escherichia coli under the control of a powerful t5 promoter to yield the 89-kda recombinant protein that reacted with anti-ef antibodies. recombinant ef was purified to homogeneity by a two-step procedure involving metal chelate affinity chromatography and cation-exchange chromatography. from 1 liter of culture, 2.5 mg of biologically active ef was easily purified. this is the first report of purification of anthrax ef from e. c ... | 2001 | 11553601 |
| hydrophobic residues phe552, phe554, ile562, leu566, and ile574 are required for oligomerization of anthrax protective antigen. | anthrax protective antigen (pa) plays a central role in facilitating the entry of active toxin components, namely, lethal factor and edema factor, into the cells. pa is also the main immunogen of both human and veterinary vaccine against anthrax. during host cell intoxication, protective antigen binds to the receptors on cell surface, gets proteolytically activated, oligomerizes to form a heptamer and binds to lethal factor or edema factor. the complex, formed by binding of lethal factor or edem ... | 2001 | 11554763 |
| detection of anthrax spores from the air by real-time pcr. | to detect and isolate bacillus anthracis from the air by a simple and rapid procedure. | 2001 | 11555211 |
| a simple and sensitive detection system for bacillus anthracis in meat and tissue. | to detect and isolate bacillus anthracis from meat and tissue by rapid and simple procedures. | 2001 | 11556906 |
| detection of anthrax spores in endemic regions of northern canada. | to determine the level of anthrax spore contamination in endemic regions of northern canada between outbreaks. | 2001 | 11556908 |
| robust hiv type 2 cellular immune response measured by a modified anthrax toxin-based enzyme-linked immunospot assay. | evaluation of immune mechanisms responsible for control of viral replication is critical to understanding hiv-2 attenuated biological characteristics in pathogenesis and transmission. evaluation of the cellular immune response is often based on labor-intensive techniques that limit the scope of most studies performed. a simple and rapid anthrax toxin-based elispot method to assess hiv-2 cellular immune response was developed. the modified anthrax toxin-based antigen presentation process performe ... | 2001 | 11559425 |
| predicting the clinical status of human breast cancer by using gene expression profiles. | prognostic and predictive factors are indispensable tools in the treatment of patients with neoplastic disease. for the most part, such factors rely on a few specific cell surface, histological, or gross pathologic features. gene expression assays have the potential to supplement what were previously a few distinct features with many thousands of features. we have developed bayesian regression models that provide predictive capability based on gene expression data derived from dna microarray ana ... | 2001 | 11562467 |
| the cell envelope-bound metalloprotease (camelysin) from bacillus cereus is a possible pathogenic factor. | a novel membrane proteinase of the nosocomial important bacteria species bacillus cereus (synonyms: camelysin, ccmp) was purified up to homogeneity as was shown by mass spectrometry in its amphiphilic form. camelysin is a neutral metalloprotease with a molecular mass of 19 kda. its unique n-terminus phe-phe-ser-asp-lys-glu-val-ser-asn-asn-thr-phe-ala-ala-gly-thr-leu-asp-leu-thr-leu-asn-pro-lys-thr-leu-val-asp-(ile-lys-asp)- was not detected in the protein data bases during blast searches, but in ... | 2001 | 11566257 |
| us biological defence research under the spotlight. | 2001 | 11567711 | |
| fluorescent amplified fragment length polymorphism analysis of norwegian bacillus cereus and bacillus thuringiensis soil isolates. | we examined 154 norwegian b. cereus and b. thuringiensis soil isolates (collected from five different locations), 8 b. cereus and 2 b. thuringiensis reference strains, and 2 bacillus anthracis strains by using fluorescent amplified fragment length polymorphism (aflp). we employed a novel fragment identification approach based on a hierarchical agglomerative clustering routine that identifies fragments in an automated fashion. no method is free of error, and we identified the major sources so tha ... | 2001 | 11571195 |
| clinicopathologic aspects of bacterial agents. | bacteria were the first organisms recognized for their potential as agents of bioaggression and the possibility of their use by a terrorist or rogue nation is considered a significant threat. five of the more likely agents (anthrax, plague, tularemia, q fever, and brucellosis) are reviewed with emphasis on their epidemiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and pathology. particular emphasis is given to the presentation of the diseases as they may appear after use in a biowarfare scenario. | 2001 | 11572140 |
| inhibition of axotomy-induced neuronal apoptosis by extracellular delivery of a bcl-xl fusion protein. | bcl-2 and bcl-xl prevent neuronal apoptosis during development, neurodegenerative disease, and trauma. to test a new anti-apoptosis strategy for neuroprotection, we engineered nontoxic components of anthrax toxin into a bcl-xl delivery system. delivery of bcl-xl by this system prevented apoptosis of cultured rat cerebellar granule cells and macrophages, and the prevention depended on both the bcl-xl and the anthrax toxin receptor binding/translocation moieties. furthermore, neuronal death in viv ... | 2001 | 11574549 |
| from the centers for disease control and prevention. human anthrax associated with an epizootic among livestock--north dakota, 2000. | 2001 | 11575325 | |
| the development of new vaccines against bacillus anthracis. | 2001 | 11576296 | |
| distribution of s-layers on the surface of bacillus cereus strains: phylogenetic origin and ecological pressure. | bacillus anthracis, bacillus cereus and bacillus thuringiensis have been described as members of the bacillus cereus group but are, in fact, one species. b. anthracis is a mammal pathogen, b. thuringiensis an entomopathogen and b. cereus a ubiquitous soil bacterium and an occasional human pathogen. in two clinical isolates of b. cereus, in some b. thuringiensis strains and in b. anthracis, an s-layer has been described. we investigated how the s-layer is distributed in b. cereus, and whether phy ... | 2001 | 11578310 |
| designing a polyvalent inhibitor of anthrax toxin. | screening peptide libraries is a proven strategy for identifying inhibitors of protein-ligand interactions. compounds identified in these screens often bind to their targets with low affinities. when the target protein is present at a high density on the surface of cells or other biological surfaces, it is sometimes possible to increase the biological activity of a weakly binding ligand by presenting multiple copies of it on the same molecule. we isolated a peptide from a phage display library t ... | 2001 | 11581662 |
| detoxification of a bacterial toxin by the toxin itself. | 2001 | 11583789 | |
| kif1c, a kinesin-like motor protein, mediates mouse macrophage resistance to anthrax lethal factor. | inbred mouse strains exhibit striking differences in the susceptibility of their macrophages to the effects of anthrax lethal toxin (letx). previous data has shown that this difference in susceptibility lies downstream of toxin entry into macrophages. a locus controlling this phenotype, called ltxs1, has been mapped to chromosome 11, but the responsible gene has not been identified. | 2001 | 11591317 |
| toxins of bacillus anthracis. | bacillus anthracis, a gram positive bacterium, is the causative agent of anthrax. this organism is capsulogen and toxinogenic. it secretes two toxins which are composed of three proteins: the protective antigen (pa), the lethal factor (lf) and the edema factor (ef). the lethal toxin (pa+lf) provokes a subit death in animals, the edema toxin (pa+ef) induces edema. the edema and the lethal factors are internalised into the eukaryotic target cells via the protective antigen. ef and lf exert a calmo ... | 2001 | 11595637 |
| anthrax toxin. | anthrax is primarily a disease of herbivores caused by gram-positive, aerobic, spore-forming bacillus anthracis. humans are accidental hosts through the food of animal origin and animal products. anthrax is prevelant in most parts of the globe, and cases of anthrax have been reported from almost every country. three forms of the disease have been recognized: cutaneous (through skin), gastrointestinal (through alimentary tract), and pulmonary (by inhalation of spores). the major virulence factors ... | 2001 | 11596878 |
| drugs and vaccines for biological weapons. | 2001 | 11606896 | |
| genetic sleuths rush to identify anthrax strains in mail attacks. | 2001 | 11606978 | |
| ["remarks on the so-called spleen fire": an early medical-scientific document in liechtenstein]. | 2001 | 18663830 | |
| anthrax - biological threat in the 21(st) century. | 2002 | 22969310 | |
| optic neuritis after anthrax vaccination. | to report the occurrence of optic neuritis after anthrax vaccination in two patients. | 2002 | 11772587 |
| optimization of the cell wall microenvironment allows increased production of recombinant bacillus anthracis protective antigen from b. subtilis. | the stability of heterologous proteins secreted by gram-positive bacteria is greatly influenced by the microenvironment on the trans side of the cytoplasmic membrane, and secreted heterologous proteins are susceptible to rapid degradation by host cell proteases. in bacillus subtilis, degradation occurs either as the proteins emerge from the presecretory translocase and prior to folding into their native conformation or after the native conformation has been reached. the former process generally ... | 2002 | 11772631 |
| september 11: the response and role of public health. | 2002 | 11772747 | |
| science and the fight against bioterrorism. | 2002 | 11772930 | |
| bacillus anthracis pxo1 plasmid sequence conservation among closely related bacterial species. | the complete sequencing and annotation of the 181.7-kb bacillus anthracis virulence plasmid pxo1 predicted 143 genes but could only assign putative functions to 45. hybridization assays, pcr amplification, and dna sequencing were used to determine whether pxo1 open reading frame (orf) sequences were present in other bacilli and more distantly related bacterial genera. eighteen bacillus species isolates and four other bacterial species were tested for the presence of 106 pxo1 orfs. three orfs wer ... | 2002 | 11741853 |
| plasmid-encoded autolysin in bacillus anthracis: modular structure and catalytic properties. | a bacillus anthracis virulence plasmid-encoded peptidoglycan hydrolase (amia) with sequence similarity to n-acetylmuramoyl-l-alanine amidases hydrolyzes peptidoglycan independently of cell wall binding. residues h341, e355, h415, and e486 are absolutely required for catalysis. many amia paralogs are fused to different sorting signals, suggesting that these modular proteins result from domain shuffling. | 2002 | 11741877 |
| preparing for bioterrorism. | 2002 | 11813831 | |
| pa63 channel of anthrax toxin: an extended beta-barrel. | anthrax toxin consists of three protein components: protective antigen (pa), lethal factor (lf), and edema factor (ef). pa(63), generated by protease "nicking" of whole pa, is responsible for delivering the toxin's catalytic fragments (lf and ef) to the target cell's cytosol. in planar bilayer membranes, trypsin-nicked pa makes cation-selective voltage-gated channels with a pore diameter of > or =12 a. the channels are presumed to be heptameric "mushrooms", with an extracellular "cap" region and ... | 2002 | 11814336 |
| acog committee opinion number 268, february 2002. management of asymptomatic pregnant or lactating women exposed to anthrax. american college of obstetricians and gynecologists. | anthrax infections are diagnosed by isolating bacillus anthracis from body fluids or by measuring specific antibodies in the blood of persons suspected to have the disease. it is recommended that asymptomatic pregnant and lactating women who have been exposed to a confirmed environmental contamination or a high-risk source as determined by the local department of health (not the women's health care provider) receive prophylactic treatment. a variety of antimicrobial regimens are available. altho ... | 2002 | 11814522 |
| calyculin a sensitive protein phosphatase is required for bacillus anthracis lethal toxin induced cytotoxicity. | previous studies have shown that the bacillus anthracis lethal toxin can induce both necrosis and apoptosis in mouse macrophage-like j774a.1 cells depending on both the toxin concentration and the phosphatase activity. in this study several protein kinase or phosphatase inhibitors were employed to evaluate the hypothesis that the lethal toxin induces cell death via protein phosphorylation processes. pretreatment with a serine/threonine phosphatase inhibitor calyculin a (300 nm) could inhibit abo ... | 2002 | 11815854 |
| acth analogue in treatment of acute aortic dissection. | 2002 | 11809289 | |
| anthrax: a molecular full nelson. | 2002 | 11807530 | |
| structural basis for the activation of anthrax adenylyl cyclase exotoxin by calmodulin. | oedema factor, a calmodulin-activated adenylyl cyclase, is important in the pathogenesis of anthrax. here we report the x-ray structures of oedema factor with and without bound calmodulin. oedema factor shares no significant structural homology with mammalian adenylyl cyclases or other proteins. in the active site, 3'-deoxy-atp and a single metal ion are well positioned for catalysis with histidine 351 as the catalytic base. this mechanism differs from the mechanism of two-metal-ion catalysis pr ... | 2002 | 11807546 |
| delivery of exogenous protein antigens to major histocompatibility complex class i pathway in cytosol. | a fragment of anthrax lethal factor possesses the interesting function of delivering recombinant protein antigens through the classical major histocompatibility complex (mhc) class i pathway. this region of the lethal factor lacks the domain associated with anthrax cytotoxicity and functions independently of its binary partner, protective antigen. experiments that used inhibitors at different steps of the mhc class i pathway supported this hypothesis. application of this discovery to current t c ... | 2002 | 11807699 |
| we are all in this together. terrorism and the physician executive. | the threat of bioterrorism striking america is no longer a threat. it's real. take a look at how the anthrax-laced letters and future acts of terrorism impact physician executives. also consider some ways to prepare your physicians for a bioterrorism emergency. | 2002 | 11806232 |
| delayed-type hypersensitivity reaction to anthrax vaccine. | the anthrax vaccine immunization program is a department of defense initiative to protect military personnel against the threat of anthrax. surveillance for adverse events associated with anthrax vaccination has shown that mild local reactions are not uncommon while systemic reactions are extremely rare. we present a case of 26-year-old male with delayed-type hypersensitivity after two doses of anthrax vaccine. | 2002 | 11799819 |
| from the centers of disease control and prevention. use of onsite technologies for rapidly assessing environmental bacillus anthracis contamination on surfaces in buildings. | 2002 | 11799964 | |
| from the centers for disease control and prevention. update: investigation of bioterrorism-related anthrax--connecticut, 2001. | 2002 | 11797623 | |
| fast tracking drugs to patients. drug approval agencies are frequently criticised for either being too slow or too fast. | 2002 | 11799053 | |
| anthrax vaccine begins a new round of tests. | 2002 | 11799216 | |
| three steps to targeting anthrax toxin. | 2002 | 11796256 | |
| molecular analysis of rifampin resistance in bacillus anthracis and bacillus cereus. | rifampin-resistant mutants were selected from uv-light-treated bacillus cereus (20 mutants) and attenuated b. anthracis (23 mutants). in addition, spontaneous rifampin-resistant mutants were also isolated in attenuated b. anthracis (22 mutants). the rifampin resistance clusters of the rpob gene were sequenced for all 65 mutants. mutations associated with resistance were consistent with those from other bacteria, though two novel changes were observed. the spontaneous rate of resistance was estim ... | 2002 | 11796364 |
| efficiency of protection of guinea pigs against infection with bacillus anthracis spores by passive immunization. | the efficacy of passive immunization as a postexposure prophylactic measure for treatment of guinea pigs intranasally infected with bacillus anthracis spores was evaluated. antisera directed either against the lethal toxin components (pa or lf) or against a toxinogenic strain (sterne) were used for this evaluation. all antisera exhibited high enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay titers against the corresponding antigens, high titers of neutralization of cytotoxicity activity in an in vitro mouse ma ... | 2002 | 11796581 |
| anthrax spores make an essential contribution to vaccine efficacy. | anthrax is caused by bacillus anthracis, a gram-positive spore-forming bacterium. septicemia and toxemia rapidly lead to death in infected mammal hosts. currently used acellular vaccines against anthrax consist of protective antigen (pa), one of the anthrax toxin components. however, in experimental animals such vaccines are less protective than live attenuated strains. here we demonstrate that the addition of formaldehyde-inactivated spores (fis) of b. anthracis to pa elicits total protection a ... | 2002 | 11796596 |
| trips: generic irony. | 2002 | 11791819 | |
| stoichiometry of anthrax toxin complexes. | after being proteolytically activated, the protective antigen (pa) moiety of anthrax toxin self-associates to form symmetric, ring-shaped heptamers. heptameric pa competitively binds the enzymatic moieties of the toxin, edema factor and lethal factor, and translocates them across the endosomal membrane by a ph-dependent process. we used two independent approaches to determine how many of the seven identical ef/lf binding sites of the pa heptamer can be occupied simultaneously. we measured isotop ... | 2002 | 11790132 |
| learning about bioterrorism and chemical warfare: medical students explore key threats. | 2002 | 11788542 | |
| anthrax exceptionalism? | 2002 | 11786887 | |
| post-traumatic stress disorder. | 2002 | 11784883 | |
| bioterrorism--biotechnology to the rescue? | 2002 | 11753354 | |
| biological and chemical agents: a brief synopsis. | the objective of this article is to provide a concise overview of the most likely biological and chemical agents that could be used as biochemical weapons. the diagnosis, pathology, prevention, decontamination, treatment, and disposition of these biological and chemical agents are presented in a tabular format for quick reference purposes. the information provided outlines the bare essentials needed to deal with any emergency or catastrophic event involving these agents. | 2002 | 11782813 |
| antimicrobial sensitivity in enterobacteria from aids patients, zambia. | mycoplasma contamination of the licensed anthrax vaccine administered to military personnel has been suggested as a possible cause of persian gulf illness. vaccine samples tested by nonmilitary laboratories were negative for viable mycoplasma and mycoplasma dna and did not support its survival. mycoplasma contamination of anthrax vaccine should not be considered a possible cause of illness. | 2002 | 11749759 |
| control of anthrax toxin gene expression by the transition state regulator abrb. | bacillus anthracis produces the anthrax toxin proteins protective antigen (pa), lethal factor (lf), and edema factor (ef) in a growth phase-dependent manner when cultured in liquid medium. expression of the toxin genes paga, lef, and cya peaks in late log phase, and steady-state levels of the toxin proteins are highest during the transition into stationary phase. here we show that an apparent transition state regulator negatively regulates toxin gene expression. we identified two orthologues of ... | 2002 | 11751813 |
| mapping the anthrax protective antigen binding site on the lethal and edema factors. | entry of anthrax edema factor (ef) and lethal factor (lf) into the cytosol of eukaryotic cells depends on their ability to translocate across the endosomal membrane in the presence of anthrax protective antigen (pa). here we report attributes of the n-terminal domains of ef and lf (ef(n) and lf(n), respectively) that are critical for their initial interaction with pa. we found that deletion of the first 36 residues of lf(n) had no effect on its binding to pa or its ability to be translocated. to ... | 2002 | 11714723 |
| problem of timely diagnosis in anthrax meningitis. | anthrax continues to remain a problem in parts of india. meningitis is often a complication encountered among cases with cutaneous anthrax. we have encountered a dozen cases of anthrax meningitis in our hosptal in the past decade. a sudden unexplained rise in cases in the past two years with hundred percent mortality stresses the need for rapid confirmatory diagnosis. most of the cases admitted with central nervous system involvement had a provisional diagnosis of conditions other than anthrax m ... | 2002 | 12126347 |
| co-immunisation with a plasmid dna cocktail primes mice against anthrax and plague. | the protective antigen (pa) of bacillus anthracis and the v antigen of yersinia pestis are potent immunogens and candidate vaccine sub-units. when plasmid dna encoding either pa or v antigen was used to immunise the balb/c mouse, a low serum igg titre was detected (log (10)1.0 or less) which was slightly increased by boosting with plasmid dna. however, when mice immunised with plasmid dna were later boosted with the respective recombinant protein, a significant increase in titre (up to 100-fold) ... | 2002 | 12126905 |
| antibodies to squalene in recipients of anthrax vaccine. | we previously reported that antibodies to squalene, an experimental vaccine adjuvant, are present in persons with symptoms consistent with gulf war syndrome (gws) (p. b. asa et al., exp. mol. pathol 68, 196-197, 2000). the united states department of defense initiated the anthrax vaccine immunization program (avip) in 1997 to immunize 2.4 million military personnel. because adverse reactions in vaccinated personnel were similar to symptoms of gws, we tested avip participants for anti-squalene an ... | 2002 | 12127050 |
| bacillus anthracis as an agent of bioterrorism: a review emphasizing surgical treatment. | to familiarize surgeons with the specific complications of cutaneous, gastrointestinal, inhalation, and systemic infection with bacillus anthracis, which may require surgical treatment. | 2002 | 12131080 |
| child safety. a perspective on bioterrorism. | 2002 | 12132419 | |
| effect of the lower molecular capsule released from the cell surface of bacillus anthracis on the pathogenesis of anthrax. | bacillus anthracis enters the body as an endospore, and encapsulation and toxin production occur after germination. capsule is proposed to be an antiphagocytic factor, and toxin induces cytokine production for systemic shock. the dep gene, adjacent to the cap region for the encapsulation, degrades the high-molecular weight capsule (h-capsule) to the lower-molecular weight capsule (l-capsule), which releases into the culture supernatant. this study analyzed the biological function of the cap-dep ... | 2002 | 12134259 |