The Perfect Pathogen by Mark Atkisson, David Kay Page A

around-the-clock effort. Every theory from
the best brains in the medical and pharmaceutical research business was
metaphorically thrown against the wall to see if it would stick. When no idea
seemed to hold, the teams would start over, scrutinizing the data again and
again in the hopes of a clue, a key breakthrough moment.
    While the gargantuan effort went forward, the only
patterns that emerged were non-specific elevated serum sample markers (mild HDL
elevations, slightly elevated ESR, Low homocistein levels, for example), all
non-specific, normal abnormals really. For now though, it’s all that Snow White
and the Dwarfs had to point somewhere into the contagion’s dark, unknown
forest. But where? 
    In the meantime, Dr. White’s cautious message back
through The White House and on to world leaders was the time has come to remind
the world community to practice measures that would prevent the spread of
communicable, community-acquired disease: frequent hand washing with soap,
minimize contact with others, drink only purified water, face masks where
necessary, and eat food only from safe sources. And again, he emphasized, wash
your hands, for deep inside something was telling him that the hands would be
key with this disease.

CHAPTER 12
     
     
    Katie decided to stop by
the conference on the way back to her office. There wasn’t much she could work
on until the data started to roll in anyway. As she entered the auditorium, she
could see that only about a quarter of the people who started the week were
still here. She hoped it was due to the normal pattern of people flying home
early and not due to the illness going around. But, she knew that it was a
combination of the two because normally at least half of the people stayed to
the end.
    As she arrived, Jimmy Akira, Katie’s friend from
Japan, was in the middle of his presentation, “Outlook for the future.” One of
the participants raised her hand and asked him what effect he thought this most
recent illness would have on the longevity predictions going forward?
    “Once the cause has been found and a remedy
developed, I expect there will be negligible, if any, effect on the longevity
of the human species going forward,” he replied. “ In many cases we find that
the species will evolve with a new strength and immunity which may even prolong
our longevity.”
    Jimmy finished his talk to a round of applause.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw Katie, and walked over to her. “I’ve missed
seeing you during the conference. I assume you have been working on some aspect
of this new bug that is going around.”
    “Yes, that is a correct assumption,” said Katie.
“I’ll be working on a prediction model over the next several weeks to determine
how and where this is spreading. Have you heard anything from your home office
in Tokyo?”
    “The elderly are dropping like flies,” he replied.
“Fortunately we haven’t seen many deaths among the younger generations. I think
that is because of the relatively healthy lifestyles the Japanese pursue. I saw
on the news here that the age range is mostly age 70 and above.”
    “I am not sure where those figures are coming
from,” said Katie. “The CDC is still in the initial phases of data collection
and trying to figure out what is causing the deaths.”
    “Well, from what I hear from Japan, the virus or
bacteria -- they haven’t determined which is causing this -- can’t be found
using normal tests. The autopsies reveal that the major organs are being
attacked systematically, causing cell damage first and then normally a stroke
or heart attack follows. This is a very strange phenomena,” said Jimmy.
    Katie cringed when she heard Jimmy’s description
of the disease. It was consistent with the description given by Dr. Shah to her
only hours before. For all of the “secrecy” surrounding U.S. efforts, they were
not the only ones coming to the same conclusions. She would have to share this
with the boss. Maybe it was