摘要：
The threat o f a biological attack has increased steadily over the past decade. Rapid and early warning of such events represents the best opportunity for protecting human health and the environment. The following discussion assesses the nature and scape o f the threat of a biological meapons (BW) attack and evaluates the array of current detection methodologies for potential inclusion in a BW early warning system. An effective early warning system requires real-time automated monitoring that is both specific and sensitive, with a low logistics and user intervention requirement; and it should be rugged enough to operate in vaqing climatic conditions for long periods o f time, with minimal impact on performance. A number o f biodetectors are currently being developed to address this need. Detectors such as the miniature mass spectrometer, the flow cytometer, aerodynamic particle couters, and biosensors are some of the recent successes in biodetection development. Biosensor-based systems, such as the array biosensor for multi-analyte analysis, represent one of the best opportunities at developing accurate and sensitive detection systems for early warning of an attack. The establishment of a fdly automated conti~uous-monitoring early warning system is still premature. However, many of the technologies currently being developed show great promise and will, within the next several years, be ready for incorporation into a fully integrated biological weapon early warning system.
