Amesbury in the UK: What is Nowitschok?

Editor's Note: The article has already been published in a form similar to that of Skripal.

On March 4, 2018, the former Russian agent Sergej Skripal and his daughter Julija were found unconscious on a park bench in Salisbury. They had been poisoned with Nowitschok neurotoxin. About four months later, there is a second case.

In Amesbury, 11 kilometers north of Salisbury, a couple was found unconscious in a residential building on Saturday night. The 45-year-old man and his 44-year-old wife are in danger of dying. After a few hours, it became clear: they, too, were poisoned with Nowitschok

What is this poison?

The term hides a group of very powerful neurotoxins. Nowitschok poisons were developed in the 1970s and 1980s in the Soviet Union. In addition, many politicians accuse Russia of attacking the scripts. It is not known if the toxin used now comes from the same lot as in the case of the double agent

No one was supposed to know that the Soviet Union had produced a new group of nerve agents at the end of the cold war. The plan was to design the substances so that they would not be detected with the usual detection methods. Thus, international arms agreements should be bypbaded. However, in the early 1990s, two chemists reported the development of substances. Up to now, no military use of Novichok is known

How is Nowitschok toxic?

The group of poisons consists of about one hundred variants of different substances. Some of them would be five to eight times more deadly than the neurotoxin VX, which allegedly murdered, for example, the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Compared to VX and sarin, Nowitschok substances are less well detected, but they can still be detected.

"Novitox toxins greatly increase the potential for the use of neurotoxins," says Andrea Sella, a chemist at University College London. The nerve toxins used as weapons are usually colorless fluids that die within minutes of taking them. Nowitschok substances are ultrafine powders. "They work more slowly, giving you more control," says Sella.

Video of the archive: What is Nowitschok?

Who can make the fabric?

Poisons are made from two non-toxic ingredients. The ingredients are quite easy to obtain, says Gary Stephens, a pharmacologist at the University of Reading. "Chemicals are not subject to strict rules." They could easily be delivered as there is no risk to the health of the suppliers. It is only in combination that the substances develop their toxic effects.

However, to combine basic substances into toxic substances, expertise is required. In addition, laboratories with high safety standards are required because they are generally operated only by governments. However, a qualified chemist would then be able to produce the neurotoxic agents. "The Novichok poisons are so dangerous that no terrorist group would produce them," says Sella. He badumes that only one state would be able to do it – theoretically also outside of Russia.

How does Nowitschok affect the body?

The body absorbs neurotoxins mainly through the respiratory tract, sometimes through the skin. Nowitschok substances can also enter the body through the mucous membranes. They act by blocking an important enzyme that controls the communication between nerve cells and muscles. If the enzyme precipitates, the muscles are over-stimulated.

Spasms are the result. In addition, the pupils contract under the influence of neurotoxins and breathing is difficult. Headaches, nausea, diarrhea and increased salivation are also possible symptoms. Depending on the extent of the poisoning, unconsciousness and cardiac arrest occur.

As an antidote to Nowitschok, several substances are considered which, for example, reactivate the blocked enzyme. Whether the rescue succeeds crucially depends on how quickly the antidotes are applied. Since neurotoxic agents affect the respiratory center in the brain, the danger is essentially that the brain is permanently damaged by lack of oxygen. Treatment is not guaranteed

What information do poison traces provide to investigators?

Toxic traces may give to the investigators who manufactured the substance. The minute residues of foreign substances or substances used for production therefore provide at least approximate conclusions. Governments have a good overview of the different processes that are used in different states for manufacturing, experts say. In the end, however, still remain uncertainties.