The German government reported on September 2 that prominent Russian opposition Alexei Navalny was poisoned with a chemical variant of Novichok agent. The notorious nerve poison is said to be used during the Soviet-era and has implicated other attacks on Russians who had crossed the current government.
Novichok Agent
Alexei Navalny is currently being treated in Berlin's Charité hospital. According to a German military laboratory, they found a variant of the Novichok agent in Navalny's biological samples. This notorious chemical was developed during the Cold War in the Soviet Union-era.
Novichok agents disrupt the chemical pathways in the brain by binding itself to the enzyme acetylcholinesterase. People exposed to these chemicals will lose control of the muscles responsible for breathing and pressure unless they are treated immediately.
According to Geoff Brumfiel, the Novichok agents were developed in a top-secret laboratory located in Moscow. The chemical was once a closely held secret of the Russian government, in which its name means "newcomer" in Russian. It was said that they developed Novichok in the later years of the Cold War, hoping to create agents that were difficult to detect and lethal.
The chemical became popular again in 2018 when it was used against Russian spy Sergei Skripal who was caught in the U.K. along with two others and his daughter, the four of them became seriously ill, and one died.
The attack prompted calls to ban the agent worldwide, and in 2019, it was officially added to the list of chemicals regulated under the Chemical Weapons Convention.
Read Also: Experts Warn Oleander Plant NOT a COVID-19 Cure
Why was Navalny poisoned?
According to the Russian government, Navalny became ill because of a metabolic disorder or diet-related condition. Navalny is known as the opposition leader investigating corruption in his country.
However, this was disputed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel based on the laboratory results. She urged the Russian government to give an explanation claiming that the world expects answers. She added that Navalny was a victim of a crime that intends to put him to silence.
Kira Yarmysh, Navalny's spokesperson, said that she only saw Navalny drink a cup of tea at the airport in Tomsk, Siberia, and then he fell ill on the commercial flight to Moscow on August 20. He was then transferred to the German hospital I Berlin to be treated.
Initially, the doctors said that they did not find any traces of poison in Navalny's system. They said that he was suffering from an imbalance of blood sugar. Moreover, analysis from Siberia noted that it did not find any toxic substances.
But just recently, the German military laboratory announced that it identified a poison. They are now planning to notify the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons to inform them of the findings.
As of now, Navalny is still in the intensive care unit and on a ventilator. The German hospital noted that his recovery will be lengthy and that it is still too early to determine the long-term effects of the poison on his system.
Read More: Spanish Adult Film Actor Arrested After Photographer Dies in Toad-venom Ritual
Check out more news and information on Poison on Science Times.
