Throughout the history of our species, in parallel with the man himself, weapons developed and improved. At first it was a tool, later - hunting equipment. Cold, firearms, traumatic, and nuclear weapons are just the part with which a man fought for his life.
In the 21st century, the world started from the rumors of a climatic and biological threat. And if the existence of climate weapons is not proven, then there is no doubt in biological hazard. The out-of-control artificial bacterium Cynthia is direct proof of this. Although, according to scientists, they brought her out exclusively for peaceful purposes.
What is she like?
It should be noted immediately that the bacterium Cynthia never existed in nature and could not appear without the help of humans. Over its creation, 20 scientists worked, and the group was led by Nobel laureate Smith Hamilton. That is how many people needed to create a strain of mycoplasma that can multiply independently.
Initially, scientists took an intracellular organism, known as Mycoplasma genitalium, which contains 482 genes. Using his chromosomes, they created a bacillus with fully computer DNA. The main task that Cynthia was supposed to carry out was to actively process oil and multiply rapidly.
We wanted the best
In the spring of 2010 there was a major accident in the Gulf of Mexico. The oil platform sank, as a result of which black gold began to fall into the reservoir. The leak lasted more than three months. As a result, almost 5 million barrels of oil fell into the gulf.
The bacterium Cynthia was supposed to eliminate the consequences of this terrible accident. Already in 2011, the bacillus was launched into the ocean. True, they say now that the scientific community was not notified, and the bacterium was sent into the water too quickly, without proper preparation.
At first, the synthetic life form did fulfill its direct duties. Scientists proudly watched the oil slick get smaller. And journalists managed to inform their readers about the invention of a biological cleaner that can rid the ocean of oil that is dangerous to fish and animals. However, it soon became clear that the flammable liquid in this case is the lesser of evils.
The bacterium has mutated
Something went wrong fast enough. It was in the laboratory that an artificially created life form was fed only with oil products; in the bay, the bacillus was able to taste other delicacies. Having tested the underwater inhabitants, the bacterium Cynthia mutated. Plankton was the first to catch a tooth, and then the bacillus took over the larger inhabitants of the sea.
Cynthia enters the body through small wounds on the body. A feature is its rapid reproduction. In a matter of hours, the bacterium corrodes the affected area and moves to “develop” new territories. At autopsy, it seems that the body simply rotted from the inside out.
Back in 2011, quite large US publications expressed their doubts about the primary function that scientists assigned to the bacterium. There were speculations that probably Cynthia was originally conceived as a biological weapon, and it accidentally hit the ocean.
Who is in danger?
It all began in the Gulf of Mexico, but the bacterium quickly moved around the oceans. Including through rain clouds. Quickly enough, they came to the conclusion that it was to blame for the mass death of birds and fish in Arkansas and North Louisiana bacterium "Cynthia". Photos of the order of 100 thousand floating fish circled the whole world. Studies have shown that victims have the most damage to their internal organs.
Then an unknown disease struck the inhabitants of the Arctic and Alaska. Seals from a previously unknown disease began to die there. For a long time the veterinarians could not understand the reason: the animals did not suffer from infections, nor did they seem to have radiation. Then they decided to conduct more in-depth studies. However, the world has not yet recognized the real results.
Cynthia and the man
A tormenting death also killed people who decided to swim in the Gulf of Mexico. In just a few days, ulcers appeared inside the organs, causing internal bleeding. People were dying simply because they wet their feet in the bay. Sadly, Cynthia (bacteria) did not pay attention to age either. Photos of victims published in the media cause both compassion and disgust.
To eliminate the disaster, BP sent its people. According to unofficial data, and in this case, official statistics have never been kept, 128 workers were infected with the bacillus, however, according to the contract, they were forbidden to go to public clinics.
In the same year, a chemical scientist Bob Naman explained that a bacterium enters the body through an open wound. At the same time, the risk of the disease is higher in women, due to the fact that they have much more mucous membranes in the body.
A new generation weapon?
The question arises: if such sad consequences came from the peaceful use of a new form of life, then what is the Cynthia bacterium capable of in wartime? Some scientists believe that such a biological weapon will be, if not worse than an atomic bomb, then at least stand at the same level.
And that's why:
- The bacillus is self-reproducing and able to multiply rapidly.
- It cannot be destroyed (antibiotics do not act on artificial DNA).
- A bacterium can travel long distances (for example, in the form of precipitation).
That is, once in the blood of a person, it is almost 100% threatened with death. For example, even amputation of the leg may not save the carrier of the bacteria. Another question is whether any nation decides to use these biological weapons. After all, if the bacterium is so scary, then everyone will suffer from it.
Is there a threat to Russia?
Paying attention to the fact that oil spilled in 2010, and the “clean-up” was started in 2011, we can safely say that at the moment, the Cynthia bacterium is not afraid of Russia. Otherwise, we would have felt the consequences 5 years ago.
Roughly speaking, then there was every reason to believe in a large-scale catastrophe. As everyone remembers from the lessons of geography, the oceans surrounds all parts of the world. There are no borders and dams in it, and it is unlikely that they would have saved from a small bacillus. Moreover, journalists were sure that then Cynthia sailed to the Gulf Stream, which washes Europe.
Then all the panic news came to naught. And here there are two options: either the story about the terrible bacterium was "inflated" from nothing, or the scientists still managed to pacify it. If the second option is true, then in case of war Russia, as well as all other countries, is in danger.
Scientists answer
A group of scientists who created the artificial bacillus, claim that the bacterium "Cynthia" is not involved in the horrors that happened in the Gulf of Mexico and on the shores of the Arctic. According to them, this form of life is not capable of digesting animal protein. That is why she as fed on oil, which is a product of plant origin, and eats.
On the one hand, such a statement removes responsibility from both scientists and the government, which allowed the launch of bacteria into the water. In support of these words, former US President Barack Obama and his family swam in the Gulf of Mexico. Time is also on the side of this statement. More than 5 years have passed since the catastrophe, and if the journalists who had caused panic were right, the immortal Cynthia would not have stopped on the dead seals.
On the other hand, there is a possibility that the topic was simply “hushed up” so as not to cause panic. Ordinary mortals do not know what scientists are doing in closed laboratories. In the end, when nuclear weapons were being created, they were not shouted about from every rostrum either.