Made in 1958 as part of the “Medical Defense Against Chemical Warfare” series, this film specifically examines the procedures used to detect food that has been contaminated as a result of a chemical attack. This includes the use of the G-Agents test used for nerve gas, and also mustard, cyanogen chloride and other agents.
Nerve agents are a class of phosphorus-containing organic chemicals (organophosphates) that disrupt the mechanism by which nerves transfer messages to organs. The disruption is caused by blocking acetylcholinesterase, an enzyme that normally destroys acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter.
As chemical weapons, they are classified as weapons of mass destruction by the United Nations according to UN Resolution 687 (passed in April 1991) and their production and stockpiling was outlawed by the Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993; the Chemical Weapons Convention officially took effect on April 29, 1997. The use of dangerous gases in warfare is forbidden by treaties already in the Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 and Geneva Protocol of 1925.
Poisoning by a nerve agent leads to contraction of pupils, profuse salivation, convulsions, involuntary urination and defecation, and eventual death by asphyxiation as control is lost over respiratory muscles. Some nerve agents are readily vaporized or aerosolized and the primary portal of entry into the body is the respiratory system. Nerve agents can also be absorbed through the skin, requiring that those likely to be subjected to such agents wear a full body suit in addition to a respirator.
The G-series is thus named because German scientists first synthesized them. G series agents are known as non-persistent, while the V series are persistent. All of the compounds in this class were discovered and synthesized during or prior to World War II, led by Dr. Gerhard Schrader (later under the employment of IG Farben).
This series is the first and oldest family of nerve agents. The first nerve agent ever synthesised was GA (tabun) in 1936. GB (sarin) was discovered next in 1939, followed by GD (soman) in 1944, and finally the more obscure GF (cyclosarin) in 1949. GB was the only G agent that was fielded by the US as a munition, specifically in rockets, aerial bombs, and artillery shells.
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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD and 2k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com
