Table 22.1.

CDC-Listed Agents Relevant to Biological Warfare

CATEGORY A AGENTS INCLUDE ORGANISMS THAT POSE A RISK BECAUSE:
▪They can be easily disseminated or transmitted person-to-person ▪They cause high mortality ▪They might cause public panic and social disruption ▪They require special action to protect public health
Bacteria
Anthrax	Bacillus anthracis
Plague	Yersinia pestis
Tularemia	Francisella tularensis
Viruses
Smallpox	Variola major
Filoviruses	Ebola hemorrhagic fever
	Marburg hemorrhagic fever
Arenaviruses	Lassa fever
	Junin virus (Argentine hemorrhagic fever)
Toxins
Botulinum toxin from Clostridium botulinum
CATEGORY B AGENTS INCLUDE THOSE THAT: ▪Are moderately easy to disseminate ▪Cause moderate morbidity and low mortality ▪Require improved diagnostic capacity and enhanced surveillance
Bacteria
Brucellosis	Brucella (several species)
Glanders	Burkholderia mallei
Melioidosis	Burkholderia pseudomallei
Q fever	Coxiella burnetti
Several food- or waterborne enteric diseases, including	Salmonella, Shigella dysenteriae, Vibrio cholerae
Viruses
Alphaviruses	Venezuelan encephalomyelitis
	Eastern and Western equine encephalomyelitis
Toxins
Ricin toxin from Ricinus communis (castor bean)
Epsilon toxin from Clostridium perfringens
Enterotoxin B from Staphylococcus
CATEGORY C AGENTS:
Emerging pathogens that could possibly be engineered for mass dissemination in the future, such as Nipah virus, hantaviruses, flaviviruses (yellow fever, dengue fever), multidrug-resistant tuberculosis