This document discusses the current threat posed by weapons of biological and chemical origin.
The proliferation of chemical and biological weapons is continuing despite the best efforts of many nations, including the United States, to prevent proliferation. Splicing genes for virulence, infectivity, stability, or other factors into the genome of an existing organism is one possibility for manipulating potential biological warfare agents. Biotechnology allows for the introduction of factors into many replicating organisms that would promote resistance to antibiotics. Biotechnology advances have also been made in engineering toxin production and genetic weaponry. As the United States and its allies develop stronger countermeasures to these potential weapons, the employment of certain agents may become less appealing to adversaries on the battlefield. Medical countermeasures may be an effective deterrent. The employment of multiple chemical and biological agents is a very likely scenario of the future, thereby challenging the medical community to be much more proactive in its development of appropriate countermeasures. The missions of the military are changing, and deployments will require a capability to address potential chemical and biological incidents on the domestic and international fronts. Military medical personnel must be continually prepared to deal with such contingencies. 12 references