Basic Information on Nerve Gas and the Use of Sarin by Aum Shinrikyo--Plenary Lecture at the Biological Mass Spectrometry Conference,Seto,Aichi,Japan,July 3-6,1995 (BMS特集号) -- (化学物質とその不正使用)

Nerve gas is a major chemical agent stockpiled as a chemical arsenal. Nerve gas was used in actual combat in the Iran-Iraq war and also in the insurgent war against Kurd minorities in Iraq. Recently, a nerve gas, sarin, was used massively against a defenseless public in Matsumoto and in Tokyo, causing a large number of deaths and injuries. This marked the first use of chemical weapons in a noncombat situation by a terrorist group. Information on nerve gas is relatively scarce; it is not easily accessible to most people. A systematic summarized article like the one here should help those who are interested in an overview of scientific information on nerve gas.In this review article, an overall view of poisonous gas is first made. Then different aspects of nerve gas are discussed. Toxicology, treatment, detection, decontamination and control of precursors are also reviewed.