While North Korea sticks with the claim that half-brother of the country’s leader, Kim Jong-nam died of a heart attack in Malaysia last month, Malaysian authorities say the substance that two women, Đoàn Thị Hương and Siti Aishah, put on Kim’s face, and the cause of his death was VX nerve agent.
I was joined by biodefense and bioterrorism researcher and Professor at Laboure College in Milton, MA, Lawrence Roberge PhD for an interview on the Outbreak News This Week Radio Show, to discuss the assassination of Kim Jong-nam and learn more about VX nerve agent.
Dr. Roberge also gave me a rundown on the likely weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) in Kim Jong-un’s arsenal.
I also got Dr Roberge’s thoughts on Bill Gates comments at the Munich Security Conference in Germany in February.
Other interviews with Lawrence Roberge PhD: Bioterrorism: A history, the agents and more
Listen to the interview below:
The Outbreak News This Week Radio Show, the first and only radio program dedicated to infectious disease and health news and information, airs every Sunday at 8 pm ET in the Tampa Bay area on AM 1380 The Biz and online at http://1380thebiz.com/
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- Bioterrorism expert responds to foiled Kenya anthrax attack
- Bioterrorism at the salad bar: 30 years ago in US history
“This VX is For You!” The recent assassination of Kim Jong-nam in Kuala Lumpur Airport by the women who wiped the ‘nerve-agent’ VX on his face has grabbed headlines. But what the media has failed to mention is that you are exposed to VX-like chemicals every day. VX is an organophosphate poison in the same class as the ones used all over the world as insecticides sprayed on crops. A ‘nerve agent’…sounds so James Bond. But it is no different than the many organophosphate insecticides—such as chlorpyrifos and malathion–we are routinely exposed to in our air, water and food, including fruits and vegetables. Organophosphates are indeed ‘nerve agents’ because they disrupt nerve transmission and destroy many bodily systems including lung, brain, heart, liver, kidney and immune. The low doses you eat won’t kill you fast like VX, but they do have chronic, long-term effects. Chronic, long-term effects include the very things we are witnessing: the explosive rise in learning and mood disorders; immune disorders; neurologic and psychiatric disorders; autism; and birth defects.
“Forty organophosphate pesticides are registered in the U.S., with at least 73 million pounds used in agricultural and residential settings” (Wikipedia)
Rachel Carson warned us over 50 years ago about the harm of insecticides, but we haven’t been paying enough attention. If someone were about to wipe VX on your face, surely you would resist. We need to have this same fighting attitude toward these very chemicals that are in our air, water and food.