MMSL 2015, 84(2):67-75 | DOI: 10.31482/mmsl.2015.006

BUBONIC PLAGUE: HISTORICAL ASPECTS AND THERAPYReview article

Wilian A. Cortopassi1,2, Teodorico C. Ramalho3,4, Carlos A. M. Fraga5, Iris Mangas1, Kamil Kuča ORCID...4,6, Tanos C. C. França1,4*
1 Laboratory of Molecular Modeling Applied to the Chemical and Biological Defense (LMCBD), Military Institute of Engineering, Rio de Janeiro/RJ, 22290-270, Brazil.
2 Department of Chemistry, Chemistry Research Laboratory, University of Oxford, Mansfield Road, Oxford, OX1 3TA (UK).
3 Chemistry department, Federal University of Lavras, CP 3037, Lavras, MG, 37200-000, Brazil.
4 Center for Basic and Applied Research, Faculty of Informatics and Management, University of Hradec Kralove, Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic.
5 Laboratório de Avaliação de Substâncias Bioativas (LASSBio), Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Caixa-Postal 68023, Ilha do Fundão, 21941-902, Rio de Janeiro (RJ), Brazil.
6 Biomedical Research Center, University Hospital Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic.

The bubonic plague or black plague is a zoonosis, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, which quickly infects a great number of people, being able to decimate entire populations. This characteristic has turned plague into a dangerous biological warfare agent since the 16th century. Nowadays, the cure for plague is available; however the possibility of genetic engineering of Y. pestis strains could lead to the resurgence of this disease as a worldwide health problem of extreme gravity. In this work we have made a short resume and discussion on plague to provide readers with some information on its historical and clinical aspects, the currently used therapy and the potential of plague being used as a biological warfare agent nowadays.

Keywords: Plague; Historical of plague; Plague therapy; Biological warfare

Received: February 18, 2015; Revised: May 15, 2015; Published: June 5, 2015  Show citation

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Cortopassi, W.A., Ramalho, T.C., Fraga, C.A.M., Mangas, I., Kuča, K., & França, T.C.C. (2015). BUBONIC PLAGUE: HISTORICAL ASPECTS AND THERAPY. MMSL, 84(2), 67-75. doi: 10.31482/mmsl.2015.006
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