”You know exactly why we can’t use mustard gas or anything similar. Our country signed the Geneva Protocol, it’d be a war crime to use chemical weapons like these.”
”But Hank! Do you really think anyone cares about signed contracts anymore? This war has gotten so big, everyone is involved. And several countries have not signed the protocol. Do you think they will shy away from using chemical warfare on us? Do you really think that?”
No, Zachary was right, Hank didn’t think that. He also knew, that there were several labs already researching all kinds of bio weapons and new, dangerous chemicals.
Nobody really knew what had triggered the Third World War, so many things were going on. But suddenly, they had been at war one day. The internet was no longer accessible, at least not for the average citizen. Cable companies had been forced to shut all their services down.
Young men and women were forced into the military, to fight an enemy they didn’t even know, to protect an ideology they didn’t believe in. Sure, in some countries riots had started, but they didn’t last long. The first bombs that rained down the country took away every sense of security people had built up over the last few decades of peace.
It had only been a matter of weeks until the government decided that the need for biological weapons was greater than the one for atomic bombs. Every side knew, that an atomic war would leave nothing behind for the winner to rule or salvage. As sick as it sounded, more environmental-friendly weapons were desired.
And that was the reason Hank and Zachary were now standing in a lab together, discussing the ethical implications of using chemical warfare on their opponent’s soldiers.
”I’m sorry, Zachary, but I didn’t spend almost a decade on my education as a biologist to create weaponry. I wanted to find new ways to treat cancer or stop the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.”
”It’s not like I wouldn’t prefer that too, Hank. But you must be realistic. Either we develop a new weapon that ends this war, or the others do.”
”Whoever those others are”, mumbled Hank. He shook his head. ”Alright. Let’s talk about your idea with the pulmonary surfactant. You want to damage it?”
Zachary seemed relieved that Hank had finally stopped arguing and nodded eagerly.
“As you know, this surfactant is a phospholipoprotein that reduces surface tension in our lungs. If there isn’t enough of it, the lung collapses or even inflates completely.”
”And your plan is what, a gas that causes the proteins to break down?”
”Almost! Nanoparticles.”
”Nanoparticles?”
”Yes. There have been studies about the effects of nanoparticles on pulmonary surfactant. If we do it right, a small dose will completely ruin an individual’s lung without affecting the environment around them.”
”So the soldiers will just suffocate where they stand”, concluded Hank. ”Nefarious.”
”And absolutely deadly”, added Zachary proudly.
Hank looked at his young colleague with deep sorrow. Zachary was too excited about killing people he didn’t even know. People that probably didn’t want to fight in the first place. Nevertheless, he couldn’t just refuse to work on this project. He had to think of his wife and children at home. If he didn’t comply, they wouldn’t be safe.
”Alright, let’s start working on this.”
He could already hear the choking of thousands of poor souls on the battlefield. They wouldn’t even know what hit them.
Imaging the interaction of atelectasis and overdistension in surfactant-depleted lungs
Biophysical inhibition of pulmonary surfactant function by polymeric nanoparticles
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