Slanted Science

Scientists at the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID)  in Frederick, Maryland work with various nasty pathogens. They’re the kinds of bugs which, experts predict, would be likely candidates for biological terrorist attacks – anthrax, that sort of thing. Well, someone apparently didn’t follow the rigorous safe-handling procedures correctly, as one of the boffins has contracted a disease known as tularemia, or rabbit fever.

We do not believe the reports claiming that co-workers’ suspicions were first aroused when the researcher began ordering 50-lb bags of carrots delivered to their lab.

Tularemia, caused by the bacteria Francisella tularensis, is a disease characterized by fever, lethargy and septicemia. Humans are unique in also developing skin lesions. F. tularensis is not a particularly threatening pathogen by itself – there are only around 200 cases per year in the US, and the illness responds well to antibiotics – but it has Government scientists concerned, as they believe it would be a bacterium of choice for bioterrorists.

A military scientist working with the bacterium at Fort Detrick has, somehow, contracted tularemia. This despite the (hopefully) stringent safeguards and working practices which are in place to prevent accidental infections. When the employee first became symptomatic, they apparently thought that they just had a dose of influenza, attending a local Army Health Care facility. Luckily for the world, tularemia isn’t spread between humans; it requires an animal intermediate.

But it seems that the employee may be looking at more trouble once they recover from the infection: it is hard to believe that they were not aware that they had exposed themselves to the pathogen (likely routes include an accidental needlestick, and splashback from a liquid culture of bacteria). Anyone working with this kind of restricted agent is under strict orders to report all such exposures, but apparently in this case the scientist failed to do so. This isn’t accidentally burning a batch of burgers at a McDonalds, it is potentially exposing your loved ones and others to a pathogen.

Don’t Hold Your Breath, But This May Lead To: hopefully, to some serious investigations into reporting procedures at these kinds of research facilities. This isn’t the first case this year of a scientist infecting themselves with a lab pathogen: here’s a report of a similar incident in Boston.

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