LYCOS RETRIEVER
Anthrax: Bacteria
built 618 days ago
Anthrax is a bacteria found naturally in soil as close to home as rural Texas, Oklahoma, and near the Mississippi River. Anthrax is ... made in research and military labs. The scientific name for Anthrax is Bacillus anthracis.
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Anthrax is a bacterial infection, similar in many ways to diphtheria. It is not a virus like smallpox. Anthrax is to be treated or prevented with common antibiotics if the illness is caught in time.
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Anthrax is widely available and is even naturally occurring in domestic livestock and certain wildlife. It's currently studied at more than 2,000 U.S. facilities. It's a bacteria, often found naturally in the soil as close to home as rural Texas, Oklahoma and near the Mississippi. It's ... made in research and military labs.
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Anthrax is diagnosed by detecting B. anthracis in samples taken from blood, spinal fluid, skin lesions, or respiratory secretions. The bacteria may be positively identified using biochemical methods or using a technique whereby, if present in the sample, the anthrax bacterium is made to fluoresce. Blood samples will ... indicate elevated antibody levels or increased amounts of a protein produced directly in response to infection with the anthrax bacterium. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests amplify trace amounts of DNA to show that the anthrax bacteria are present. Additional DNA-based tests are also currently being perfected.
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Anthrax is diagnosed by culturing the bacteria from blood, skin lesions, or respiratory secretions. Special confirmatory testing of suspicious bacteria is then done at governmental public health reference laboratories. Other available tests include antibody assays and detection of the anthrax DNA in a tissue or blood specimen.
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Anthrax is an infectious, often fatal, bacterial disease. It is treatable if caught in the early stages. Treatment may be futile by the time the symptoms appear. Due to the recent bioterrorism every American needs to know how to protect themselves against exposure and how to seek treatment for the disease.
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