Bacillus anthracis, anthrax bacteria, can form stable spores that are resistant to harsh conditions and extreme temperatures. Photomicrograph courtesy University of Michigan.
The third employee at American Media, Inc. in Boca Raton (Lantana), Florida has tested positive for exposure to an anthrax bacteria known as the Ames strain after an Ames, Iowa bacteria found in the tissue of a dead animal in the early 1950s. The other two cases are also the Ames strain which has been distributed over the past half century to many medical researchers to make anthrax vaccines. The 35-year-old woman is being treated with antibiotics. The FBI says there is no evidence to link the three anthrax cases to terrorists, but has now shifted its investigation to a criminal probe. The consensus is that the anthrax bacteria have an "unnatural source," which implies manipulation at least by someone with malicious criminal intent, if not terrorists.
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