In the United States, a new substance is being tested on humans to remove harmful radioactive materials from the body. The drug, HOPO 14-1, is expected to be able to neutralize some of the dangerous elements used to make so-called “dirty bombs,” including uranium. If proven safe and effective, the antidote could protect against potential harm from nuclear accidents or terrorist attacks.
Approximately 40 volunteers will receive different doses of the drug. Doctors will monitor the development of side effects and the health of the volunteers. The results of the first phase of the research are expected in 2024, say the researchers from the California-based institute SRI International (they are funded by the government agency National Institutes of Health).
The term “dirty bomb” is also used to refer to an explosive device containing radioactive materials. When such a bomb explodes, it causes radiological contamination of nearby areas. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission does not consider a “dirty bomb” to be a nuclear weapon or a weapon of mass destruction.
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The radiation cloud from a dirty bomb may dissipate within a few blocks or kilometers of the blast site, while the contaminated area after a nuclear weapon detonation may cover tens of thousands of square kilometers. However, the effects of radiation can still damage a person’s DNA, tissues and organs, leading to diseases, including cancer. Scientists are therefore looking for a drug that can counteract or at least reduce the effects of radiation.
Two injected drugs have already been developed to help people who have been exposed to radioactive plutonium, americium, or curium. Scientists have known for many years that iodine tablets can be used to protect against the effects of radiation – they were given to people after the Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986. Another drug, Prussian blue (potassium hexacyanoferrate), can help remove radioactive caesium and thallium from the human body. If HOPO 14-1 proves effective, physicians will have the option of protecting against uranium and neptunium in addition to plutonium, americium and curium.
There has not been a single successful dirty bomb attack in the world, although there have been attempts. According to the British Royal United Services Institute for Defense Studies (RUSI), Chechen rebels planted a bomb containing dynamite and radioactive caesium-137 in Moscow’s Izmaylovsky Park in 1996. It was discovered by security services and subsequently neutralized. In 1998, Russian special services discovered and neutralized a dirty bomb planted near a railway line in Chechnya, according to the organization’s report.
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