The death of a 28-year-old woman who worked in an anti-plague laboratory in Russia is raising concerns about what caused her illness.
asserted
what → work → illness
The woman died Friday, according to the World Health Organization, with no cause of death confirmed.
uncertain
cause → die → death
A Russian official said the woman died of pneumonia of “undetermined” origin and did not link her death to her work at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East.
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woman → say → Siberia
The U.S. State Department said, however, that it’s monitoring reports of a fatal case of suspected pneumonic plague in the Irkutsk region, in southeastern Siberia, in coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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it → say → Control
Key details remain unknown, including whether the woman was infected with plague at all and, if so, whether it was naturally occurring plague or bacteria studied in the lab.
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it → remain → lab
Scientists also don’t know how quickly her illness progressed and what treatment she received.
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she → know → treatment
Nearly 200 people that came into contact with the woman are under precautionary medical observation, according to Russian media.
uncertain
that → come → media
“Maybe it’s going to come out that she died from something unrelated and it was just a coincidence” that she worked in an anti-plague lab, said Lisa Morici, a microbiologist and immunologist in the Tulane University School of Medicine.
asserted
Morici → go → Medicine
Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House’s former Covid response coordinator, told NBC News in an interview, “If there were weapons programs, biological weapons programs in these labs, that would be much more concerning to me.”
“We need to understand that now,” he added.
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he → tell → that
The situation is still rapidly unfolding.
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situation → unfold → ?
But here’s what we know about the pneumonic plague, how it spreads and how dangerous it is.
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it → ’ → plague
Plague is an infection caused by Yersinia pestis bacteria.
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Plague → cause → bacteria
Known as the “Black Death” during the 14th century, the plague triggered several global pandemics over centuries before the discovery of antibiotics.
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plague → know → antibiotics
It presents in three main forms: bubonic, pneumonic and septicemic, according to the World Health Organization.
uncertain
It → present → Organization
All three are caused by Yersinia pestis, but they occur in different parts of the body.
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they → cause → body
Bubonic is the most common form, Morici said.
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Morici → say → ?
It is primarily transmitted through bites of infected fleas or direct contact with infected rodents, which can cause painful, swollen lumps in the lymph nodes.
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which → transmit → nodes
Left untreated, however, it can spread to the lungs and become pneumonic plague, which can pass from person to person through respiratory droplets, Morici said.
Septicemic plague occurs when the bacteria grow and spread in the blood.
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bacteria → leave → blood
How does pneumonic plague spread?
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plague → spread → ?
Pneumonic plague can spread through the air when an infected person or animal coughs or sneezes.
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person → spread → air
The respiratory droplets don’t travel very far, maybe three to six feet, said Dr. Dave Wagner, director of the Pathogen and Microbiome Institute at Northern Arizona University.
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Wagner → travel → University
“They drop to the ground pretty quickly.”
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They → drop → ground
It’s the rarest form of the disease, according to WHO.
uncertain
It → ’ → WHO
Dr. William Schaffer, an infectious diseases expert at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said close contacts are most at risk.
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contacts → say → risk
Pneumonic plague isn’t something that spreads “distantly across a room, but to face-to-face contacts,” he said.
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he → spread → contacts
“It’s highly unlikely for most people to get the pneumonic form of the disease,” Morici said.
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Morici → ’ → disease
Covid, for example, spreads like wildfire through the air, traveling beyond six feet.
“It’s nothing like the Covid-19 pandemic,” she said.
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she → spread → pandemic
While pneumonic plague is the rarest form of the disease, it’s also the deadliest.
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it → ’ → disease
“It’s the one that’s so frightening because it can kill so quickly,” Morici said.
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Morici → ’ → ?
It progresses remarkably fast, Wagner said.
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Wagner → progress → ?
Symptoms typically appear within one to two days of exposure, and patients require treatment within 48 hours of showing symptoms to prevent fatal complications.
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patients → appear → complications
Symptoms can include shortness of breath and coughing or blood in the phlegm.
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Symptoms → include → phlegm
Because of how rapidly it attacks the respiratory system, public health experts consider this strain the most likely candidate for a biological attack, according to Morici.
uncertain
strain → attack → Morici
People with pneumonic plague are often quarantined, she said.
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she → quarantine → plague
Health care workers will often wear personal protective equipment, such as an N95 mask, or even a full body suit in case of accidental exposure.
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workers → wear → exposure
“We’re using the strictest levels of biocontainment,” she said.
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she → use → biocontainment
How is it treated?
Antibiotics are highly effective against plague, including pneumonic plague.
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Antibiotics → treat → plague
“This is why we don’t have big plague outbreaks anymore,” Wagner said.
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Wagner → have → outbreaks
Schaffner said there’s no evidence to suggest that the plague bacteria are evolving in a way to become resistant to antibiotics.
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bacteria → say → antibiotics
“We will not turn 2026 into the Middle Ages, where the Black Death caused vast amounts of death throughout Europe.
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Death → turn → Europe
…and 11 more, not listed.
The Aporia
