Biological Warfare Diseases & Agents Listing

Category A

• Anthrax (Bacillus anthracis)
  
• Botulism (Clostridium botulinum toxin)
  
• Plague (Yersinia pestis)
  
• Smallpox (variola major)
  
• Tularemia (Francisella tularensis)
  
• Viral hemorrhagic fevers (filoviruses [e.g., Ebola, Marburg] and arenaviruses [e.g., Lassa, Machupo])
  

Category B

• Multstuberculosis
  
• Nipah virus
  
• Tickborne encephalis ne encephalitis])
  
• Melioidosis (Burkholderia pseudomallei)
  
• Psittacosis (Chlamydia psittaci)
  
• Q fever (Coxiella burnetii)
  
• Ricin toxin from Ricinus communis (castor beans)
  
• Staphylococcal enterotoxin B
  
• Typhus fever (Rickettsia prowazekii)
• viral encephalitis (alphaviruses [e.g., venezuelan equine encephalitis, eastern equine encephalitis, western equine encephalitis])
  
• Water safety threats (e.g., Vibrio cholerae, Cryptosporidium parvum)
  

Category C

• Hantaviruses
  
• Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis
  
• Nipah virus
  
• Tickborne encephalitis viruses
  
• Tickborne hemorrhagic fever viruses
  
• Yellow fever

Category Descriptions

Category A Diseases/Agents
The U.S. public health system and primary healthcare providers must be prepared to a ddress varied biological agents, including pathogens that are rarely seen in the United States. High-priority agents include organisms that pose a risk to national security becau

• can be easily disseminated or transmitted from person to person
• cause high mortality, and have the potential for major public health impact
• might cause public panic and social disruption
• require special action for public health preparedness

Category B Diseases/Agents
Second highest priority agents include those that:

• are moderately easy to disseminate
• cause moderate morbidity and low mortality
• require specific enhancements of CDC's diagnostic capacity and enhanced disease surveillance

Category C Diseases/Agents
Third highest priority agents include emerging pathogens that could be engineered for mass dissemination in the future because of:

• availability
• ease of production and dissemination
• potential for high morbidity and mortality and major health impact.

by : www.virology.net