One nerve agent that came up much in my research was Sarin. One article I found was in BioTeach Journal entitled "Sarin Nerve Gas - Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Pon-1." The article revolved mostly around the mechanism of how this nerve agent attacks. Sarine binds to AChE which prevents it from binding to acetylcholine. Once this occurs, AChE undergoes dealkylation and becomes resistant to hydrolysis and is inhibited. This bind to sarin is irreversible. The article was explained nerve agent poisoning very well and aided in my understanding of the mechanisms of action. It also provided visuals, which also made it easier to understand the actual process (Simpson, 2004).
Sarin has been used as a terrorist attack a countless amount of times in history. They have been the cause of many deaths throughout history. A more memorable one was the one that occurred in Tokyo in 1995. A terrorist group released eleven bags of Sarin in a Tokyo subway system, leaving twelve dead and thousands injured. The article was very detailed and made me feel very disappointed. The knowledge that we have gained about nerve agents has been used negatively, which is very hard to take in (Tokyo Subway Attack).
Now that I understand the true dynamic of nerve agent poisoning, hearing that it is used as a form of public attack makes me feel disheartened. People who commit these acts are hurting innocent people in possibly one of the worst ways possible. Luckily there are forms of treatment, but even so, by the time an antidote is able to be administered, it is too late for some.
Sources:
Simpson, B.
(2004). Sarin Nerve Gas - Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Pon-1. BioTeach
Journal , 2.
Tokyo Subway Attack. (n.d.). Retrieved from Crime Museum:
http://www.crimemuseum.org/crime-library/tokyo-subway-attack
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