scottmi@ncar.UCAR.EDU (SCOTT MICHAEL C) (08/13/90)
From: boulder!snoopy!scottmi@ncar.UCAR.EDU (SCOTT MICHAEL C)
Iraq currently uses (so far as I have been able to tell) the first generation
of nerve gases (the ones invented by the Germans as an offshoot of their
pesticide industry in the 1930's.) These are: Sarin, Tabun, and Soman. All
are organophosphate cholinesteraise inhibitors, which means that they kill
by causing the nerves to tighten up every muscle in the human body as far
as they can. Since the heart is a muscle, this means that it will stop beating.
Atropine is used as a first step (for those of you who don't allready know)
antitdote. It is a very effective muscle relaxant; after taking it, you feel
like you're not there. It doesn't reverse the effects of the nerve gas, though,any more than Contac actually CURES colds -- they both just alleviate the
symptoms.
2-Pam Chloride is injected after the atropine. It protects the nerve endings
and reverses the effects of mild nerve gas poisoning.
Apparently, multiple injections of atropine CAN be made, but since the stuff
is quite lethal in strong enough doses, it's not exactly safe. There was a
soldier at the Rocky Mountain arsenal in Denver, where lots of nerve gas is
stored, who had a bit of an accident a number of years ago.
He was apparently inspecting the nerve agent drums (which I understand to be
very much like ordinary 55-gallon drums, except that they have a corrosive-
resistant inner lining) when he brushed against one of the drums. Apparently,
when this pallet of drums had been moved into the storage bunker on a forklift,
the drum in question had been scraped against the cement wall and creased. The
crease in the metal drum had rusted, and a small hole had formed in the drum.
This soldier noticed a drop of some liquid on his arm after brushing against
the drum - some of the nerve agent (whatever it was.) It began to take effect,
so he used his injector set, which was not enough. He crawled to some kind of
storage building, where he used several more sets of injectors. He lived,
even though he had used (I'm not sure of the number, but I remember it being
something more than five) several sets of injectors; both atropine and 2-Pam
chloride.
Mustard gas (which the Iraquis also have in quantity), has no antidote. It
is bis (2-chlorethyl) sulfide:
Cl-CH2-CH2-S-CH2-CH2-Cl
It causes horrible blisters by alkylating proteins. Charring of lung tissue
is the usual result of inhaling the stuff. Skin blisters also appear, which
makes wearing the full NBC suit, rather than just the mask advisable.
Fortunately, US NBC suits are more comfortable than Soviet models - ours are
actually wearable (to a minimal extent) in the hot environment of Saudi
Arabia.
--don't like snow, miss Deirdre, and wish I was still in Santa Cruz.shibumi@uunet.UU.NET (Kenton A. Hoover) (08/17/90)
From: apple!well.sf.ca.us!well!shibumi@uunet.UU.NET (Kenton A. Hoover) boulder!snoopy!scottmi@ncar.UCAR.EDU (SCOTT MICHAEL C) writes: >are organophosphate cholinesteraise inhibitors, which means that they kill >by causing the nerves to tighten up every muscle in the human body as far >as they can. Since the heart is a muscle, this means that it will stop >beating. When the nerves fire, actylcholine is produced at the nerve junction, and if enough accumulates, signals are prevented from getting across the junction. Cholinesteraise is the enzyme which breaks up actylcholine at nerve junctions. The organophosphate compounds destroy cholinesteraise, and let the actylcholine accumulate. The process takes about 15 minutes, though it can take as long as an hour. You die by asphyixiation, btw -- the heart will continue beating since it uses a different mechanism to decide to function. Your muscles don't tighten up, since no signals get transmitted. Atropine does not work as a muscle relaxant. It simply eats actylcholine. The problem with its use is that its effectiveness is controlled entirely by how much of the agent gets into your system. 2-PAM chloride is of unknown effectiveness (reseach has suggested that its helpful, but due to a lack of 'field trials', we don't know how well it works), but it works to attempt to get the chemical cycle around the nervous system reset. > It causes horrible blisters by alkylating proteins. Charring of lung tissue >is the usual result of inhaling the stuff. Skin blisters also appear, which >makes wearing the full NBC suit, rather than just the mask advisable. >Fortunately, US NBC suits are more comfortable than Soviet models - ours are >actually wearable (to a minimal extent) in the hot environment of Saudi >Arabia. Our ability to treat the effects of mustard agents are much improved over the first world war. The reason is that a large number of the cancer chemotherapy agents are simply mustard gas (nitrogen mustards) in liquid form. (mustard gases best affect fast growing cells, like skin, mucous membranes, and cancerous cells). Anyway, a common mistake for a doctor to make is accidentally screw up the line or get a few drops on the skin of the patient (which is far worse than what usually happens when troops are hit by mustard gas), and so doctors have gotten alot of experience in dealing with this situation. Another difference is that during the first world war, it might take four hours for a patient to be evacutated from the front and even longer to reach a field hospital. Now, we are able to evacutate patients within thirty minutes to full field and floating hospitals. I would think this should improve the prognosis for gas casualties. As interesting as these questions are, the Iraqis have mainly been employing them against forces who are largely unable to defend themselves against their effects. What we don't know about is their own ability to deal with chemical agents directed against their own forces. VX (one of the nastiest nerve agents in the US arsenal) is much worse than the Sarin or Soman, and very, very persistant. Also, chemical agents work best if you employ them against rear-area troops, since they become a logistical inpediment. While the Iraqis are likely to have trained and equipped their best troops for the realities of a chemical battlefield, the rest of their forces may not be as well equipped or diciplined. -- | Kenton A. Hoover Chief Engineer | | Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link +1 415 332 4335 shibumi@well.sf.ca.us | |============================================================================| | Evil will always triumph over good because good is dumb. |
dietz@cs.rochester.edu (Paul Dietz) (08/28/90)
From: dietz@cs.rochester.edu (Paul Dietz) Today's NY Times (Sunday, 8/26/90, page 28) reports that scientists at Penn State have successfully bonded metal atoms to antibody molecules. The resulting "metalloantibodies" promise to offer broad protection against chemical weapons, environmental pollutants and drug overdoses. The antibodies act as catalysts, destroying a targeted type of poison molecule. The metalloantibodies would be administered even before exposure to the toxin. Paul F. Dietz dietz@cs.rochester.edu