Anthrax letters; by Mariana

Anthrax letters in New York and Washington, DC

Back in October 2001, five people died because of these letters. Approximately two dozen victims developed full-blown infections. Many more were exposed, but were treated in time to avoid becoming ill. Tens of thousands at risk of exposure were prescribed antibiotics as a precaution. Many developed qualms about opening mail. The FBI launched an investigation of the attacks, they believed at first to be more terrorism by Al Qaeda. But as the evidence slowly grew to show that the attacks have domestic roots. The attacker is profiled by the FBI as a "lone wolf" type with a personal agenda, rather than international terrorism. The puzzle is what led the FBI to conclude that only one person was involved, and at the same time have no clue as to who that single isolated individual could possibly be. Among the few things we know about the killer is that he is well trained in microbiology and handling biowarfare agents. Along with the letters to various public figures in which the anthrax was delivered, he left behind virtually none of the usual clues, hairs, fibers, smudgeprints -- that help forensic scientists narrow the investigation in most such cases. The care required to avoid exposure to such a powerful toxin -- one that has killed two victims in New York and Connecticut by routes that remain obscure -- make it virtually certain the attacker never had physical contact with the letters after they were filled with anthrax.

Something about Anthrax

Anthrax is a bacteria that's remarkably immune from mutation, thanks largely to an odd life-cycle that swings between long periods of being dormant and brief periods of volatile activity. In terms of evolutionary time, anthrax appears to be a relatively recent bacteria with little opportunity for mutation. Anthrax also has an ecological niche that protects it from mutation.

- By;Mariana Jiménez B.