Microbiology and Immunology

WORLD OF MICROBIOLOGY AND IMMUNOLOGY Public health, current issues

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food safety, can be simultaneously addressed at various levels,

including basic research, policy development, and public

awareness.

In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist

attacks on targets in the United States, public perception of the

health risks of what is commonly known as bioterrorismhas

been heightened. The ability to transport harmful microorgan-

ismsor their products, such as anthrax, through the mail or via

dispersal in the air has made clear how vulnerable populations

are to attack. Public health agencies have realized that the abil-

ity to promptly respond to an incident is critical to any suc-

cessful containment of the disease causing microbial threat.

But the achievement of this response will require a huge effort

from many public and private agencies, and will be extremely

expensive. For example, it has been estimated that a response

to each incident of bioterrorism, real or not, costs on the order

of 50,000 dollars. Repeated mobilization of response teams

would quickly sap the public health budget, at the cost of other

programs. Thus, in the latter years of the twentieth century and

the new century, the issue of bioterrorism and how to deal with

it in a safe and economically prudent way has become a para-

mount public health issue.

Another public health issue that has become more

important is the emergence of certain microbial diseases. In

the emergence category, hemorrhagic diseasesof viral origin,

such as Ebola and Lassa fever are appearing more frequently.

These diseases are terrifying due to their rapid devastation

inflicted on the victim of infection, and because treatments are

as yet rudimentary. The emergence of such diseases, which

seems to be a consequence of man’s encroachment on envi-

ronments that have been largely untouched until now, is a har-

binger of things to come. Public health agencies are moving

swiftly to understand the nature of these diseases and how to

combat them.

Diseases are also re-emerging. Tuberculosisis one

example. Diseases such as tuberculosis were once thought to

be a thing of the past, due to antibioticsand public health ini-

tiatives. Yet, the numbers of people afflicted with such dis-

eases is on the rise. One factor in the re-emergence of certain

diseases is the re-acquisition of antibiotic resistanceby bacte-

ria. Another factor in the re-emergence of tuberculosis is the

sharp increase in the number of immunocompromised indi-

viduals that are highly susceptible to tuberculosis, such as

those with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). The

overuse and incomplete use of antibiotics has also enabled

bacteria to develop resistance that can be passed on to subse-

quent generations. Public health efforts and budgets are being

Ciprofloxacin used to treat anthrax.

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