* from Anonymous Scientist … documents are being withheld that are exculpatory to Dr. Bruce Ivins … the FBI has simply fabricated an important part of its case
Posted by DXer on March 11, 2010
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research at Ft. Detrick
Anonymous Scientist writes …
This is but one example of documents being withheld that are exculpatory to Ivins. The breadth and depth of this is almost breathtaking, and belongs in the former Soviet Union – not America. It seems Detrick personnel are still under a gag order.
Read the below documents very carefully.
The FBI basically fabricated out of whole cloth that Bruce Ivins worked nights in suite B3 without adequate explanation.
The explanation is hidden in plain sight. His calendar REQUIRED him to enter B3 on the exact nights that the FBI characterized as “unauthorized”.
Read all of this very carefully and imagine you were one of the other 2 persons assigned to checking the animals on that study (there were 3 daily checks).
- Who are these other 2 persons and why have they not been allowed to come forward?
- Why is Bruce Ivins’ lab notebook where he recorded the health of the animals on these nights not been released?
Compare pages 8 and 9 of the affadivit for search warrant here:
http://www.dcd.uscourts.gov/anthrax/SearchWarrant-08-431M-05.pdf
To pages 123 and 124 of http://foia.fbi.gov/amerithrax/847447.PDF
The first document ominously (almost with drum rolling) states on page 9:
“Beginning on September 28, Dr Ivins worked eight consecutive nights which consisted of the following times in Building 1425 with time spent in Suite B3″:
Friday September 28
Saturday September 29
Sunday September 30
Monday October 1
Tuesday October 2
Wednesday October 3
Thursday October 4
Friday October 5
After October 5, Dr Ivins did not enter Suite B3 in the evening again until October 9, for 15 minutes, and then October 14, for 1 hour and 26 minutes.
But then look at his calendar on pages 123 and 124 at http://foia.fbi.gov/amerithrax/847447.PDF !!!
That’s precisely what his calendar called on him to do – work these very eight consecutive nights checking on the animals. Good statistics need to be obtained to see exactly when animals died in order to properly analyze the effectiveness of vaccines – hence he did it at the same time every evening.
The affidavit is therefore deliberately misleading and does not mention that his work schedule was followed to the letter.
******
CASE CLOSED ... what really happened in the 2001 anthrax attacks? 
Old Atlantic said
To summarize some key points
1. Dugway was to produce 1e13 spores ie 10 grams.
2. This was to be done in small lots sent 2 to 4 weeks apart.
3. Ivins team would need 2 to 4 weeks to purify each lot.
4. The contract amount was 30,000 dollars.
5. They paid 50,000 dollars in 1997 for 3e13 ie 30 grams. That became RMR-1029. That includes some additional lengthy runs by Ft. Detrick’s team.
6. Ivins gave Dugway until the end of 2002 to get it done to give them leeway, i.e. over a year. That also gave Ivins and his team that time to purify the lots and verify the quality. Dugway would have to redo bad lots as in 1997 since the contracts were almost the same we can infer from the emails.
7. The management at Dugway and Ft. Detrick knew about this. It went through the contracts people at both ends. These had to be approved by management.
8. We can think of each lot as likely the size of the Senate run and smaller than than the Sep 18 anthrax if we go with 2 grams for Senate and 5 to 10 grams for Sep 18. The amounts may have been larger.
9. Dugway would not produce Senate quality spores because Ivins and his team have to purify them over 2 to 4 weeks.
10. Ivins could not have duplicated such a lot in 12 to 18 hours or a weekend or a week. He could not produce the purity levels of the Senate letters which are above what is used for challenges at Ft. Detrick or Battelle.
11. Dugway already had anthrax to start with that was considered equivalent to what Ivins would have sent if he had sent a ml as a starter on Sep 4 2001.
12. Battelle was sent anthrax from RMR-1029 earlier in 2001. This was in the amounts of lots of 50 ml. This was to save them producing it on their own. Another indication its not a weekend job to produce it.
Old Atlantic said
The emails and the contract amounts and details, the work indicated to purify for 2 to 4 weeks, the sending the 10 grams in small batches, the use of the Dugway facility to grow it and the requirement for Ft. Detrick to purify it, all show that the Senate anthrax was produced over an extended period of time, weeks and possibly months including purification.
The amounts in the contract for producing the anthrax, 30,000 to 50,000 dollars do not include the labor and facilities at Ft. Detrick to purify. The dollar amounts are a fraction of the amount to put together these facilities that can then do the runs and purification and testing in the course of their work to produce the 10 grams contracted for in 2001 or 30 grams contracted for in 1997 and sent in many batches. Note that 30 grams in 6 batches would be 5 grams a batch.
The Senate anthrax letters were not produced by Ivins in a weekend or even a week on the sly. They were produced by some group with facilities adequate to the work and with expertise and know-how. They could set up their work and leave it set up for weeks and months. The anthrax in the letters was likely prepared in advance over weeks or months.
Old Atlantic said
One simple scenario is that Battelle decided to duplicate the RMR-1029 flask with 30 grams in one liter or possibly more dilute. They took the RMR-1029 sample sent in May 2001 from Ivins and sent 1 ml to Dugway. They had a contract with Dugway that mirrored the 1997 Ft. Detrick contract.
Dugway produced 10 liter lots and sent them in ones or twos to Battelle. Each 10 liter lot was around 2 to 2.5 grams of spore equivalent.
In 1997 most shipments from Dugway to Ft. Detrick were 2 10 liter lots together. These might be 4 to 5 grams of spores. One of these might have been diverted to become the Sep 18 2001 letters.
A second lot of 4 to 5 grams was purified to a greater extent to get the 2 grams of Senate anthrax powder. This purification used up half of it.
The 2 to 4 weeks between shipments from Dugway corresponds to the time from Sep 18 2001 to roughly Oct 9 2001. However, there was likely a lag so that the shipments were weeks earlier to Battelle. It might have been some place else besides Battelle.
This does not exclude al Qaeda or Pakistan since they might have assets inside or visiting any of these facilities as DXer has pointed out. It is also possible some other facility elsewhere in the world replicated Dugway and had a similar production and purification process.
DXer said
So what you would be looking for to support the theory is shipments from Dugway to Battelle, is that right? Query whether that would explain all the confusing findings — such as UNM and Battelle not being a match with Flask 1029 when it should. Dr. Keim once told a friend of mine at lunch that any large collection might have the same morphs — that the hypothesis had never been tested. But is a simpler approach just to ask about the discrepancy as to volume of shipping records to Battelle from Flask 1029 in May 2001 or so? With regrowth of that amount?
Pakistan can be excluded on general principle because there would be no motive, there is no evidence regarding such an intent etc., etc. All the documentary evidence of motive, planning, specific intent relates to Ayman Zawahiri and not the country Pakistan.
DXer said
Sources:
1. Infiltration of US Biodefense: Dugway
2. Bruce Ivins email – concern samples were missing
3. Was code used in the letters?
4. Does this document seized in Afghanistan point to infiltration of US biodefense?
5. Ayman Zawahiri’s correspondence with infiltrating scientist Rauf Ahmad
6. Discovery Hall
https://caseclosedbylewweinstein.wordpress.com/2010/02/07/floor-plan-of-suite-at-gmus-discovery-hall-in-2001-with-ali-al-timimi-and-leading-anthrax-scientists/
7. Ayman’s recruiting network for his anthrax planning and the announcement of his plans in March 1999
8. order not to talk to Bruce
9. 100 ml discrepancy
Old Atlantic said
I agree the test of this scenario is to check shipping records, checks, and contracts at Battelle and Dugway.
The issue of whether something at Battelle matched RMR-1029 is important. You likely know that better than I do. This may have been implied at one of the 2008 Science conferences. I think Ed Lake had a discussion on this at an earlier thread which I have misplaced.
Pakistan I will debate at another time. I agree that you have done an important job researching the al Qaeda connections and finding evidence in that direction.
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010506_Batch27%28redacted%29.pdf
Page 8 Spore information. On spores sent.
Its dated Tuesday, May 08, 2001 11:10:03 am
B. anthracis Ames spores, RMR-1029
Reference = USAMRIID Notebook #4010, Bruce Ivins.
Prepared in 1997 at Dugway Proving Ground POC.
Purified in 1997 at USAMRIID – POC = Bruce Ivins.
bruce.ivins@AMEDD.ARMY.MIL
50 ml shipped to (b)(6) Battelle, on 8 May 2001, in two 50 ml prolypropylene tubes, 25 ml of spore suspension per tube.
Concentration = approximately 3.9 x 10^10 per ml in 1% phenol
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010524_batch28%28redacted%29.pdf
More emails on Battelle and sending spores and Dugway Spore Contract.
May 06 2001. Someone is going to get 50ml of spores sent to them next Tuesday.
“70 ml of Ames spores at 3.9 x 10^10 CFU per ml.”
..
Page 5.
Subject Spore Contract with Dugway
Monday May 07, 2001 12:48:23 PM
(b)(6)
Do you have a copy of the contract between us and Dugway, about 1996 or 1997, in which they made several lots of Bacillus anthracis Ames spores for us? I think we paid them about $50,000, but I’m not sure. Anyway, if you could find it and I could have a copy of it, it would be great. We are in need of more spores and they could make them. …
==
They paid 50,000 in 1997 to get 30 grams of spores. They are paying 30,000 dollars in 2001 to get 10 grams of spores. They will get multiple shipments from Dugway. They need 2 to 4 weeks between shipments to purify the last shipment. That is not to get to Senate quality purity but below that.
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010524_batch28%28redacted%29.pdf
page 14 another email on Dugway spore contract.
According to the DOJ/FBI Ivins could have just grown the 10 grams in Senate purity in 12 to 18 hours in his lab. No need to pay 30,000 dollars to Dugway. No need for 2 to 4 weeks between batches to purify Dugway output. No need to write all these emails and likely talk on the phone to get approval and in meetings. Ivins would have spent less time to do it himself on a weekend and gotten better quality than Dugway sends according to DOJ/FBI.
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010605_batch29%28redacted%29.pdf
Page 36
Subject Spores and Counting
Monday June 18, 2001 1:39:40 PM
Hi, (b) If Battelle still has trouble with the spores I sent them this week, I think that there will be a trip up there next week, with (b)(6) …
…
So it looks like Battelle is the one that got the spores by Fed ex in June 2001. These likely were from RMR-1029.
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010605_batch29%28redacted%29.pdf
More emails on spores and foaming. Page 35, June 18 2001, spores sent to someone by Fedex.
page 33. Subject Spores.
“I think if you send us material about every 2 to 4 weeks, that would be good. That will give us the time to purify each batch.”
Bruce
email below
“I reworded the Statement of Work for the anthrax spores according to what you said.”
…
This saying that Dugway will send batches, not the 10 grams equivalent all at once in one mailing. They will send it in small amounts. Ft. Detrick then will need 2 to 4 weeks to purify each one.
Compare that to the Senate anthrax, supposedly grown and purified in a single week working at night hiding from lab mates that the processing was going on.
Old Atlantic said
Page 10 has another email June 5 2001 on the spores and Statement of Work for the anthrax spores.
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010619_batch30%28redacted%29.pdf
page 22 of 37 Thursday June 21 2001 email from Ivins.
“We put down December 2002, to give you all enough leeway for the spore production, …”
email below To Ivins June 20 2001
Bruce Ivins,
Here is the statement of work returned to you with my edits. … The quantity is now 1 x 10e13 and the use of your stock sent to us will be used to make some storage beads. …
Regards, (b)
Old Atlantic said
1 x 10e12 is 1 trillion. If we go with 1 trillion spores equals 1 gram, then the production is for 10 grams of spores. This is 1/3 of the original amount in RMR-1029 according to the current discussion.
The Senate anthrax letters contained at least .871 grams each after all losses. The first mailing was 5 to 10 grams. So Dugway is producing somewhere around the amount sent in the mailings give or take some.
This shows that this amount was way beyond the capacity of Ivins to do in 12 to 18 hours as the FBI/DOJ say. They negotiated for months and paid 30,000 dollars to get 10 grams of spores. This is the amount supposedly mailed at by the mailer. It shows Ivins couldn’t do it in the 12 to 18 hour time frames the FBI/DOJ rely on.
Old Atlantic said
Moreover, the Senate anthrax quality was very good. Remember, Ivins had to reject one Dugway shipment in 1997 for low quality. Moreover, some of the emails in the 2001 exchange discuss the need to purify at the Ft. Detrick end. So the Senate 2+ grams of very pure spores suitable for aerosolization was at least the quality of Dugway runs if not more. Ivins could not match that quality in 12 to 18 hours while having to keep his lab mates from knowing he used the equipment.
Old Atlantic said
Pages 29 to 31, more emails on the Dugway Spore Contract.
Old Atlantic said
Notice giving until December 2002 to give leeway to finish spore production. The DOJ says Ivins could do it in 12 to 18 hours Senate letter quality. But Ivins gives Dugway until the end of 2002 to get it done. Ivins says they can do it in small lots sent out every 2 to 4 weeks.
Old Atlantic said
Giving Dugway until end of 2002 to produce 10 more grams of spores to use in challenges at Ft. Detrick shows that Ivins and his bosses expected this work to on for years. The plans for large scale animal experiments contained in the emails over the course of the summer indicate that as well.
There is one email with a long list of animal challenges to do and this list is repeated at least once several months apart. These show an expectation by Ivins and his bosses that the anthrax challenges would go on for years. Ivins bosses were aware of the emails to Dugway and of the contract and they were approving it and the time frame.
The contracts people at Ft. Detrick were helping Ivins as we see in numerous emails. So this was all management sanctioned and planned.
This completely contradicts the DOJ/FBI summary claiming that Ivins was upset in Summer 2001 because he was about to go off the anthrax work.
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010619_batch30%28redacted%29.pdf
Page 19. Someone get spores Fedex from Ivins. Presumably, they don’t use Fedex to send spores from one building to another at Ft. Detrick.
“If it seems the spores I sent you are clumped up a bit at the top, then take the spores you need from midway down into the suspension and you resuspend them.”
This would mean you would need even more grams of spores to get ones that don’t clump. It also shows how these spores are not 2 grams of Senate quality anthrax spores. This is the procedure to deal with micro grams and milli grams and milliliters.
Old Atlantic said
Page 20.
Re Spores and Foaming.
Thursday, June 21, 2001 8:07:30 AM
“but we never see anything such as what you have described, with a complete separation of spores and liquid. …I’m not sure when the aerosol at Battelle is planned, but if I’m needed there, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of next week are OK, but not Thursday or Friday.
Email below is to Ivins.
All,
I nebulized 10E9 spores, and as previously it foamed during nebulization to a whipped cream consistency, would not go back into suspension and at the end the surface there was a layer of foam and the water was almost completely clear (i.e. all the spores came out of suspension and went into the foam).
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010627_batch31%28redacted%29.pdf
Page 2. June 25, 2001. More on “Dugway Spore Contract”
I’m sending you both the electronic copy of a statement of work for a new contract by Dugway to make more Ames spores for challenge for us to use in anthrax studies. They are needed to replace the current Ames spores which we are using for our present challenge studies. The Statement of Work is virtually the same as the approved SOW from a 1997 contract between USAMRIID and Dugway for producing Ames spores for us. As written, it is acceptable to Dugway and to me.
(b) Can you please tell me (and (b)) what the best APC fund cite would be to take the $30,000 from for this? 6EDJ? 6IDT? other? Since it is in the support of our rPA studies, it could come out of several APC’s.
…
Thanks for your help on this. If we could get this in place and Dugway could get started before of the summer, it would be great.
Bruce.
Old Atlantic said
More on page 17. Note they are spending 30,000 dollars for this run. The FBI says Ivins could do pure Senate anthrax spores in a weekend in 12 to 18 hours using bench top equipment.
Note also the 30,000 dollars spent to get these spores produced indicates that Ivins work on anthrax was not about to be canceled as the FBI/DOJ claimed in the summary.
These emails and this contract and amount of money contradict the FBI/DOJ on numerous accounts.
Old Atlantic said
Ivins would hardly think he could produce grams of spores and purify it in a weekend while sending these emails. They remind him of how hard it is to do the work. Its not 12 to 18 hours where you just casually manufacture grams of pure anthrax spores that are perfect for aerosolization, which is the way they use it in some cases.
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010723_batch32%28redacted%29.pdf
Page 22 to 29
From Ivins
To Ivins, (b)(6)
Subject Re Dugway
Date Wednesday, August 15, 2001 1:23:52 PM
Hi, (b)
Any word on the Spore contract? Just as soon as everything is approved and signed on all sides, we’ll be read to go here. Hope you had a great vacation!
—
More emails below it
Bruce
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010723_batch32%28redacted%29.pdf
Page 4
From Ivins
To (b)(6)
cc (b)(6)
Subject Re Dugway
Date Wednesday, July 25, 2001 9:27:57 AM
and emails below.
“How are things going on your end with respect to the contract? According to our contract person, (b)(6) (below) it was sent and should be there. I’m looking forward to working with you again on these.
-Bruce”
From (b)(6)
Sent Tuesday, July 10, 2001 10:16 AM
To Ivins
Subject Dugway
Bruce,
Money and statement of work went to Dugway on Monday. They confirmed receipt.
(b)
Anonymous said
Since Dugway got the money and contract went to Dugway Monday July 9, 2001 and they confirmed receipt, why didn’t Dugway do a first run during July or August for Ft. Detrick? Why is it later on Sep 6, 2001 that they tell Ivins that the fermentor needs maintenance and they still have a couple runs to do?
Doesn’t this imply that Dugway was doing runs in July and August for others? Those others also had contracts and money in at Dugway. Ivins gave Dugway to the end of 2002. So Dugway did the other runs for others first. These could have been subtilis runs or anthrax runs. Some of them may have said use whatever you have at Dugway instead of sending their own seed. If Dugway had done an RMR-1029 based run for Battelle earlier, (with Battelle using the RMR-1029 from Ivins on May 8, 2001) then Dugway might have used that for others as well.
Old Atlantic said
This was an Old Atlantic comment.
Does Dugway have a business of producing spores for hire?
Were they in that business in the summer of 2001? Who do they sell to? Just government or quasi government? Universities?
Who can buy anthrax or similar dangerous organisms?
Does Dugway produce only for itself and Ft. Detrick?
The emails from Dugway indicate they were doing at least two runs not for Ft. Detrick in 2001. Were those for Dugway or outside Dugway?
Does anyone know of anyone other than Ft. Detrick buying from Dugway? Has Battelle? Does anyone know of Dugway selling anthrax to another party? What about others at Ft. Detrick?
DXer said
Edgewood had its B3 completed about that time and was doing testing of nanoemulsions in 2001. (See nanobiotechnology report). PE was head of the Critical Reagent Program.
Battelle was across I-95.
Did Edgewood or Battelle obtain spores from Dugway?
Old Atlantic said
The emails with Dugway from August 2001 to November 2001 on the Spore Project demonstrate that they needed Dugway to produce grams of spores using its large fermentor.
The FBI would have us believe that Ivins was producing grams of anthrax spores late at night during the same time as these emails without his lab mates noticing and doing it in a few hours at a time at night or a weekend, taking down all his equipment during the weekdays, putting it back up at night or the weekends, taking it down, etc.
Yet in his emails, Ivins is negotiating a run from Dugway. All the effort to get Dugway to produce grams of spores was known to their superiors at both places. There may be more emails not yet made public on this subject.
The FBI/DOJ theory that Ivins was producing grams of spores in odd moments of the night or weekend while Dugway needed a large fermentor to produce grams of spores in a project that Ft. Detrick would be billed for makes no sense.
Old Atlantic said
The details of Dugway runs should be released. How long they do a run, preparation, cleaning and maintenance after the run, size of run, capacity of device, tests they do to determine yield, testing they do with subtilis at other times to check their yield, etc. When was this run finally received at Ft. Detrick? What was the size? Who got it? What was done with it? Did it match RMR-1029? How close was it?
DXer said
Someone is being asked about an Apple computer the questioner suggests Ivins lost in 2002. Did he have an Apple Computer that he lost? The person being questioned says Ivins didn’t use an Apple.
Old Atlantic said
Page 25
From Ivins
To
Re Spore Work
Monday Aug 27, 2007 9:29:28 AM
Hi,
If you have what we sent to you previously, GREAT!. Go ahead and use that, since it’s what you used to prepare the last batch. Thanks, () Give us a heads-up for when you plan to send the various shipments.
below this
August 27, 2001 9:26 AM
To Ivins
Re Spore work
Hi Bruce,
I do have an aliquot of AMES that you had sent previously if you’d like me to use that. I just thought you might have a specific stock from which you wanted me to start. If its all the same to you, then I’ll use what you had sent me for the last go round. Just let me know.
Old Atlantic said
It appears that they consider what would have been sent Sep 4 2001 and what Dugway already had to be the same. They presumably would have sent 1 ml from RMR-1029 on Sep 4 2001 if Dugway had needed a new starter.
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010821_batch33%28redacted%29.pdf
Page 20 of 52.
From Ivins
To (b)(6)
RE Spore Work
Sat Aug 25 2001 7:01:03 PM
Hi, (b)
That’s great news. If you want to initiate an EA101, then we’ll get the spores ready on this end. Let’s plan on sending them on Tuesday, September 4. That should give time to everyone on both ends. We’ll send you spores from the previous spores you sent us. They will be on gel ice. We’ll send you 1 ml, 3 x 10^10 per ml, in a Nunc polypropylene vial. If you need more, let me know. We’ll wait for the EA101. My FAX is (b)(6). (b)(6) who is in charge of safety here, has a FAX number of (b)(6). Our facility registration number is (b)(2). …
Bruce
Below is an email dated Thursday Aug 23 2001 7:00 PM
To Ivins
Subject spore work
Bruce,
I just received the test execution directive from the Program Analysis Office for the sproes preparation. We’re good to go. Did you want to send a stock source of AMES for us to use? If you do, then I’ll initiate and EA 101 on Monday or whenever you want to do it.
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20011025_batch37%28redacted%29.pdf
Page 19 of 52
Spore Project Nov 1, 2001 12:29:56. “This refers to the contract with Dugway to make more spores for aerosolization.
Below on same page is email Nov 1, 2001 evidently from Dugway from comment in Ivins email above.
“I’m just getting the sterilize in palace fermentor back together. I’ve been replacing O rings, etc.
Old Atlantic said
Page 50 email Oct 12 about finding who sent Ames to in last several years. “We are checking our MTA’s as well, but I want to make sure we haven’t overlooked anything.” The MTA’s should be made public. MTA means material transfer agreement?
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010912_batch35%28redacted%29.pdf
Page 6 of 45. UBMTA email. Sep 19 2001.
UBMTA stands for Uniform Biological Materials Transfer Agreement. You can type in UBMTA and read one at NIH.
Who was the UBMTA with? Who was getting biological materials?
Page 7 of pdf. Sep 20 email. With Battelle. Ivins offers to go to Battelle to offer advice with respect to spore production, purification, storage, etc.
DXer said
What dates did Bruce do the in vivo study using mice and guinea pigs with the University of Michigan researchers? I know Dr. Ivins wrote some company that had a decontamination agent in November 2001 or so and promised to write up the research they had done. Dr. Ivins expressed consternation that some company had billed the decontamination agent as US Army-tested and certified. Was the guinea pig and mouse study done for the lifelong friend of my acquaintance, the former Egyptian Islamic Jihad member recruited by Ayman Zawahiri?
Lew has posted some documents relating to the in vitro study with virulent Ames that Bruce did with some University of Michigan researchers back in May 1998. There was also correspondence not yet posted that discussed the in vitro work that was done and looked forward to in vivo studies at some point in the indefinite future.
One of the researchers, Tarek Hamouda, has a lifelong friend, Tarek Hamid, that I know and greatly admire. Hamouda would visit Hamid in Cairo from Khartoum. Then Dr. Hamouda went to Cairo Medical, graduating in December 1982, and then obtained his microbiology degree in 1994. He came to head a DARPA project on nanoemulsions within 3 or so years.
My acquaintance Dr. Hamid was recruited by Ayman Zawahiri into the Egyptian Islamic Jihad while they were both schoolmates in medical school. But then he withdrew when he got queasy when they asked him to bury a security officer alive near the mosque. Now he lectures on nonviolence and resolving differences. He consults with the Intelligence Community, according to the book cover of INSIDE JIHAD, which was published in May 2008.
I’ve emailed Dr. Baker and Dr. Hamouda to ask when the in vivo study was done at USAMRIID but didn’t even find out when the in vitro study was done until the documents were produced recently by DOJ.
United States Patent 7,655,252
Baker, Jr. , et al. February 2, 2010
Antimicrobial nanoemulsion compositions and methods
Abstract
The present invention relates to compositions and methods for decreasing the infectivity, morbidity, and rate of mortality associated with a variety of pathogenic organisms and viruses. The present invention also relates to methods and compositions for decontaminating areas colonized or otherwise infected by pathogenic organisms and viruses. Moreover, the present invention relates to methods and compositions for decreasing the infectivity of pathogenic organisms in foodstuffs.
Inventors: Baker, Jr.; James R. (Ann Arbor, MI), Hamouda; Tarek (Ypsilanti, MI), Shih; Amy (Ann Arbor, MI), Myc; Andrzej (Ann Arbor, MI)
Assignee: The Regents of the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI)
Appl. No.: 10/179,547
Filed: June 25, 2002
Example 7
In Vivo Toxicity Study I
CD-1 mice were injected subcutaneously with 0.1 cc of the compounds of the present invention and observed for 4 days for signs of inflammation and/or necrosis. Dilutions of the compounds were made in sterile saline. Tissue samples from mice were preserved in 10% neutral buffered formalin for histopathologic examination. Samples of skin and muscle (from mice which were injected with undiluted compounds) sent for histological review were reported to show indications of tissue necrosis. Tissue samples from mice which were injected with diluted compounds were not histologically examined. Tables 14 and 15 show the results of two individual experiments.
TABLE-US-00014 TABLE 14 Compound Mouse ID # Dilution Observation BCTP 1326 undiluted necrosis 1327 undiluted no reaction 1328 1:10 no reaction 1329 1:10 no reaction 1324 1:100 no reaction 1331 1:100 no reaction Saline 1344 no reaction 1345 no reaction
TABLE-US-00015 TABLE 15 Compound Mouse ID # Dilution Observation BCTP 1376 undiluted necrosis 1377 undiluted minimal necrosis 1378 1:10 no reaction 1379 1:10 no reaction 1380 1:100 no reaction 1381 1:100 no reaction Saline 1394 no reaction 1395 no reaction
Guinea pigs were injected intramuscularly (in both hind legs) with 1.0 cc of compounds of the present invention per site and observed for 4 days for signs of inflammation and/or necrosis. Dilutions of the compounds were made in sterile saline.
Tissue samples from guinea pigs were preserved in 10% neutral buffered formalin for histological examination. Tissue samples were not histologically examined.
TABLE-US-00016 TABLE 16 Compound Guinea Pig Dilution Observation BCTP 1023-1 undiluted no reaction 1023-2 1:10 no reaction 1023-3 1:100 no reaction Saline 1023-10 no reaction
The results of In Vivo Toxicity Study I show that subcutaneous and intramuscular injection of the compounds tested did not result in grossly observable tissue damage and did not appear to cause distress in the experimental animals (Table 16).
Example 9
In Vitro Study with Bacillus Anthracis
Experiments with X.sub.8W.sub.60PC preparations to study the bactericidal effect of the compounds of the present invention on the spore form of B. anthracis were performed. The sporicidal activity of different dilutions of X.sub.8W.sub.60PC (in water) on six different strains of B. anthracis is shown in FIG. 3. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, X.sub.8W.sub.60PC killed over 98% of seven different strains of anthrax (those of FIG. 3 and Ames, USAMRID) within 4 hours and is as efficient as 1-10% bleach. Similar sporicidal activity is found with different dilutions of X.sub.8W.sub.60PC in media (FIG. 6). FIG. 7 shows the time course for the sporicidal activity of X.sub.8W.sub.60PC against the Del Rio, Tex. strain of B. anthracis compared with zero time at room temperature. As shown, X.sub.8W.sub.60PC can kill anthrax spores in as little as 30 minutes.
Old Atlantic said
Page 26 Tues Sep 11 2001 email reviews animals to use in efficacy studies in rabbits and monkeys.
schedule rabbits
0 month and 1 month immunize 160 rabbits and 8 control groups (of 20).
3 months. challenge group 1 and group 1 controls.
Monkeys. Immunize 77 monkeys and 7 control groups, (10 each).
This appears to be in the future, but it gives an idea of how many animals are used.
Old Atlantic said
Email page 8 discusses using 94 rabbits.
Old Atlantic said
Page 19 Ivins says wants to immunize 100 rabbits and bring vaccine on Sep 18 and then 4 weeks later on Tuesday October 16.
Page 20 Ivins not talks about “we are using in the mouse passive protection studies.” So we see rabbits and then mice as currently being studied in that time frame. Add the Guinea pigs and you have a lot of animals as pointed out by others.
Old Atlantic said
Page 21 now talks about guinea pigs and monkeys.
Old Atlantic said
Page 23 “A contract is being finalized with Battelle to perform a combined stability and efficacy study. …
rabbits will be immunized with a single dose of this material (…) and then challenged with 100 LD50 of B. anthracis Ames spores.”
Aerosol is one of the methods to challenge the animals by Battelle.
Old Atlantic said
Page 18 of 31 of same pdf.
From Ivins
Date FW Ames Spores
Date Thursday Sep 6, 2001 10:17:03 AM
Info on the Dugway Ames spores – Bruce.
Original Message
From: Blanked out
Sent Thursday September 06, 2001 10:28 AM
To Ivins, Bruce E
Subject RE: Ames spores.
Hi Bruce,
“I’m getting ready to have some maintenance performed on the fermentor that we will use. We’ll probably start up in about a month. I’ve got a couple of other runs to do first. I’m having a wonderful introduction to Fall with my football team at 2 and 0 and the temperature starting to drop.
blank
Original Message
From: Ivins
Sent Thursday September 06, 2001 7:42 AM
Subject Ames spores
repeat of the email word for word sent by Ivins and dated 9:42 AM
However, here the time was shifted to 7:42 AM.
Dugway is in Utah. If you type Utah time into Google you find its 2 hours less than Eastern time. This shows the emails were going from Ft. Detrick to Dugway in Utah.
Old Atlantic said
Sounds like Dugway already has the Ames spores it needs to start the run. Those are RMR-1029 from Ivins?
Old Atlantic said
Was one of those runs to do first with subtilis? Or were these all anthrax runs? Who else needed this type of production level? Was it for Battelle for challenge experiments at Battelle?
Old Atlantic said
The two runs to be done first might be on a fermentor different than the fermentor to be used for the new Ames run for Ft. Detrick. Or they might have been done before the maintenance. If the mailed anthrax came from these runs, then it might have been post fermentor processing that led to the difference in the two powders behavior, i.e. somewhat better processing on the second batch. Or two batches from the fermentor, and one was better quality, the second run. Just possibilities.
Old Atlantic said
Why did the fermentor(s) need maintenance? Because of being used recently? If anthrax is done in a run, what is their procedure for post anthrax cleaning or maintenance? They don’t want anthrax in a subtilis run. But the other direction is not the same problem.
Old Atlantic said
Was this run actually done? When was it sent? Does it match RMR-1029? If not, how close?
Old Atlantic said
Did Battelle get a shipment that was made at Dugway in 2001 that was from RMR-1029? Are there emails from Ivins prior to Sep 6 2001 about this run? Do these discuss Ivins sending Ames to Dugway to use to start the run? What about emails later in 2001 when they got the shipment? If the shipment was canceled, what about emails about that? Did those one slip out? Why did the DOJ not disclose an Ames run being done by Dugway around this time? And document all the runs with Ames or subtilis and who got which ones? Can a subtilis run from Dugway around this time be matched to the subtilis in the letters?
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010831_batch34%28redacted%29.pdf
Sep 06 2001 email page 17 of 31.
===
From Ivins, Bruce E Dr. USAMRIID
To Blank
Subject Ames Spores
Date: Thursday, September 06, 2001 9:41:11 AM
Hi, ?
I talked to blank in contracts here, and he said that everything is ready to go as far as the contract for the production of the Ames spores. We’re looking forward to getting them — we’re down to about 1/3 of the spore prep that you made previously — and then purifying them. Please let us know ahead of time when we should start to expect them.
Thanks!! Hope you have a good fall!
–Bruce.
===
This shows again that producing anthrax spores in the amounts used in the experiments was beyond the resources of Ft. Detrick to do in a reasonable amount of time with their equipment.
Had Ivins already sent a sample from RMR-1029 to whoever was to produce the spores? This would have been a recent sending of RMR-1029 so it should be identical to what was in RMR-1029 around Sep 6, 2001.
Old Atlantic said
Look at the email on the next page, page 18. This is a response to the response to the Ivins email. The response contains the original Ivins email from page 17 but with the time shifted to 7:42 am. This shows that the correspondent was in a time zone 2 hours earlier. Type Utah time and you find its 2 hours earlier. So Ivins was corresponding with Dugway in Utah.
Anonymous Scientist said
For anyone inclined to believe 2 hours for checking on some animals is a long time – read what the study involved and how many animals needed to be checked:
Page 23
Click to access 847425.PDF
2 hours one person job to look at the animals and count the dead bodies.
I’m not surprised it took 2 hours (how long would it take to check 500 animals?). Below are the details of the experiments Bruce was planning. Note that his calendar states “night guinea pig and mouse check”. Thus he was slotted to do that night check on these days (the nights he was , unsurprisngly, recorded as entering B3). But there were 3 checks per day planned – presumably someone else was scheduled to do these checks.
The facts now seem to be saying that the months of September and October 2001 were in fact quite unusual in that the Hot Suite B3 was hosting a major animal vaccine test with hundreds of animals.
I think we now know why everyone in Detrick is under a gag order – since no doubt they would quickly show that the FBI’s nefarious assertions (for example stating that it was “unexplained”) for Ivins entering B3 on the very nights he was scheduled to are, in fact, a complete fabrication.
Click to access DrBruceIvinsEmail_Two.pdf
(page 9)
AVA
1. What should be done.
a) Passive studies in mice – I would prefer that these studies be contracted out. We can provide
the challenge spores and antiserum.
1) Mice = CBA/J females, 10 per group, about 20 g. Inject intraperitoneally on days -1, 0, 1,
2 and 3 with one of the following: rabbit anti-rPA antiserum; rabbit anti-AVA antiserum; human anti-
AVA IgG; Normal rabbit serum; normal human IgG. On day 0, challenge subcutaneously with 10LD50s
of V1B spores. Check mice 3X daily for deaths and note differences in survival as well as time to death
differences. If protection is seen, repeat experiment with 10 LD50s of Ames spores. If no protection is
seen, drop the challenge dose down to 3-5 LD50s of Vollum 1B spores. Enough animals should be
ordered to repeat experiments. Total number of animals = 400
b) Passive studies in guinea pigs. We can do these studies in the guinea pig animal room in B3.
1) Guinea pigs = Hartley strain, 8 males and 8 females per group, about 350 g at the time
of the experiment. Inject intraperitoneally on days -1, 0, 1, 2 and 3 with one of the following: rabbit
anti-rPA antiserum; rabbit anti-AVA antiserum; human anti-AVA IgG; Normal rabbit serum; normal
human IgG. On day 0, challenge intramuscularly with 50 LD50s (5000) of Ames spores. Check guinea
pigs 3X daily for deaths and note differences in survival as well as time to death differences. If
protection is seen, repeat experiment with 100 LD50s of Ames spores. If no protection is seen, drop the
challenge dose down to 10 LD50s of Vollum 1B spores. Enough animals should be ordered to repeat
experiments. Total number of animals = 500
DXer said
FWIW, here is an email dated October 5, 2001, stating “Results so far, after 3 days of challenge.”
Old Atlantic said
Click to access 20010912_batch35%28redacted%29.pdf
Page 20 is the email and following emails discuss this ongoing work as well.