In 1943, German Army recruited Nobel Prize winner (1938) Austrian-German biochemist Richard Kuhn to determine the nerve agent damage cause mechanism.
He and his research team discovered the nerve agent blocking enzyme – cholinesterase and its operation process. As part of their research, in 1944, Kuhn and colleagues synthesised a new nerve agent, soman, which was twice as good as sarin at inhibiting cholinesterase.
Author Archives: Toni Leikas
Back to the Future New Normal – Part IV
How Can Such a Stupid Thing Destroy Humanity? What have we most of all been taught as children? The answer is simple: wash your hands before eating, and after using the toilet, and if you are sick stay at home, and avoid other people. But why most of us forget these are the most crucialContinue reading “Back to the Future New Normal – Part IV”
Back to the Future New Normal – Part III
Bad news is never welcomed and we can’t predict when we receive them. Perhaps not always? Maybe we have blinded our eyes and we dont’ want to see the whole truth behind all of this. There is no more time to go into “avoidance mode”.
Sarin (GB) 1938
Sarin was the second nerve gas classified as toxic poison, and it was discovered in 1938, by a group of German scientists, while they were attempting to create a pesticide stronger than Triton83. The new agent was named in honour of its discoverers: Schrader, Ambros, Gerhard Ritter, and von der Linde.
Back to the Future New Normal – Part II
What have we done? Whom has our selfish behaviour presently impacted, and will affect in the future? The part II of this Back to the Future New Normal saga will rise up environmental change related concerns, and how these will influence our new normal, when we are on a rapid pace creating playgrounds for new pandemics…
Cholinesterase Inhibitors
Strange things happen in nowadays strange times. Surprisingly, all these events seem to accumulate… Currently new words are used in news headlines across the globe – cholinesterase inhibitors – but what is the story behind this new (old) term?
Tabun (GA) 1936
Tabun was the first nerve gas classified as toxic poison, and it was discovered accidentally by the German chemist Gerhard Schrader, in January 1936, while developing new organophorous based insecticides, to fight against world famine.
Nitrogen Mustard (HNs) 1930’s
Nitrogen mustards were first synthesised in the 1930s as potential chemical warfare weapons, to have greater systemic toxicity than sulphur mustard. American and German defence organisations started military production in 1941 and 1943.
Back to the Future New Normal – Part I
This article is just the first of eight parts of my “Back to the Future New Normal” saga.
I want to rise up topics, reasons, actions, and diverse variables, which — based on facts — will affect our future. I hope you enjoy these slightly dark-toned texts.
What is Ammonium Nitrate?
Let’s look a bit further into ammonium nitrate that is, allegedly and so far, the cause of the unfortunate event in Beirut (Lebanon), that has claimed over 100 lives.
