Metcalfe Neil
Birmingham University Medical School, Selly Oak, B29 6DX.
Med Confl Surviv. 2002 Jul-Sep;18(3):271-82. doi: 10.1080/13623690208409635.
Biological weapons have been used in war from the start of recorded history. This article reviews the history of the subject, including the outbreak of the Black Death and the use of smallpox against American Indians. The new science of microbiology was misused from soon after its start and, despite the 1925 Geneva Protocol, the Japanese experimented extensively on prisoners in China. The Allies carried out extensive research during the Second World War, notably the United Kingdom into anthrax on Gruinard Island and the United States into a variety of agents. Despite the 1972 Biological Weapons Convention (BWC), a major programme continued in the former Soviet Union (leading to an accidental outbreak of anthrax). Most recently Iraq was revealed as having an extensive programme, with weaponization of large amounts of various agents, and several terrorists groups have attempted to use biological agents as weapons. Modern developments in biotechnology could lead to even more serious developments, and effective preventive measures, including strengthening of the BWC, are imperative.
从有历史记载开始，生物武器就被用于战争。本文回顾了这一主题的历史，包括黑死病的爆发以及天花被用于对付美洲印第安人。微生物学这门新科学自诞生后不久就被滥用，尽管有1925年的《日内瓦议定书》，日本仍在中国的囚犯身上进行了广泛试验。同盟国在第二次世界大战期间开展了广泛研究，特别是英国在格鲁伊纳德岛进行炭疽研究，美国则研究了多种制剂。尽管有1972年的《生物武器公约》（BWC），前苏联仍继续开展一项重大计划（导致了一次炭疽意外爆发）。最近发现伊拉克有一项广泛计划，对大量各种制剂进行武器化，一些恐怖组织也试图将生物制剂用作武器。生物技术的现代发展可能导致更严重的情况，因此必须采取有效的预防措施，包括加强《生物武器公约》。
