Anthrax is a zoonotic infectious disease caused by Bacillus anthracis, a Gram-positive, spore-forming bacterium belonging to the Bacillus cereus group of pathogenic Bacillus, which also includes a food poisoning bacterium Bacillus cereus [DS:H00329] and an insect pathogen Bacillus thuringiensis [DS:H01399]. Human infections can occur from infected animals or animal products through three main routes: skin (cutaneous), lung (inhalation) and mouth (gastrointestinal). The disease is rare, but the potential threat of anthrax spores in bioterrorism is widely recognized.
Category
Infectious disease
Brite
Infectious diseases [BR:br08401]
Bacterial infections
Infections caused by Gram-positive bacteria
H00328 Anthrax
Human diseases in ICD-11 classification [BR:br08403]
01 Certain infectious or parasitic diseases
Certain zoonotic bacterial diseases
1B97 Anthrax
H00328 Anthrax
Pathogen
Bacillus anthracis [GN:ban bar bat bai bax bans] Bacillus cereus [GN:bal]