The Perfect Pathogen (24 page)

Yuka

Permafrost. Peat bogs. Frostlines.
Tundra. All things most people have read about, somewhat understand, and always
associate with places that are very cold and very wet. Few wish to visit these
locales; fewer still wish to live there. Lucky for them, for hidden beneath the
millions of square kilometers of tundra, especially in Canada and Russia,
well-preserved below those permafrost zones, lay animals long since dead,
entombed by the cold from ancient times, quietly waiting to be rediscovered.
And humankind’s luck was beginning to run out…

From the peat bogs of Siberia near
the Arctic Ocean, the world celebrated the discovery in 2010 of a nearly intact
juvenile female woolly mammoth. They named her Yuka. Time had been kind to
Yuka’s remains, a splendid specimen that was estimated at around 39,000 years
old. With this remarkable find, scientists took a serious look at whether one
could bring these beasts back to life through cloning. They could do this
because Yuka provided scientists with something they had been searching for a
long time -- intact mammoth serum.

Roaming the earth in the late
Pleistocene period, Yuka had died suddenly, perhaps at the hands of ancient
humans, given the evidence with her remains. For unknown reasons Yuka had been
wounded, probably in an earlier fight with a lion, based on wounds she bore.
For some reason she escaped the lion, but then fell prey to humans after she
apparently became stuck in a bog, perhaps while trying to flee her human pursuers.
The mark of man is clear, for Yuka also bore on her body straight cuts likely
from a tool of some sort, some of the first clear evidence of mammoth/human
contact.

Still, Yuka’s hunters were unable
to butcher her remains completely. In fact, they had only enough time to take
some of her organs before something abruptly interrupted their work -- a
blizzard or extreme cold, or perhaps a sickness among them. Why remove the
organs first? Probably for some ritual significance. In any event, Yuka was
left fairly intact and her remains quickly sank into the bog and became frozen
almost instantly. The ensuing rapid freeze persisted and preserved Yuka for the
early 21
^st
century.

Similar stories like Yuka’s
affected other wooly mammoths, preserving their carcasses too, but in most
cases the death-to-freezing delay eliminated any chance for scientists to find
viable cells to study, cells best obtained from an ancient blood/serum sample,
for therein lay the best DNA. The odds of finding intact DNA were formidable,
but scientists knew that once they found viable DNA an ancient species could
theoretically be brought back to life through cloning. The idea was to insert
viable mammoth DNA into elephant eggs, then implant it into an elephant female,
perhaps one of the Asian elephant variety, since the African kind were too
dangerous to work with. The hope would be that one of the now fertilized eggs
would take hold and grow. This then could, in theory at least, lead to the
resurrection of a species long dead.

For others studying and handling
the remains of these marvelous beasts now coming to light there was also money
to be made, that ever present tonic and fuel to human progress. (And ambition.)
From cloning and drug companies, to exhibitions and merchandising, many people
wanted in on the action these zombie mammoths could offer. 
 

And while researchers and
opportunists exploited this major "Jurassic Parkesque" breakthrough
with Yuka, no one gave a serious relook as to why these great elephant-like
beasts died off in the first place. Sure, a human hand was involved in Yuka’s
case and this in and of itself was truly remarkable. But evidence from other
mammoth remains confirmed that they also died suddenly. Their stomachs were
often full, they were of varying ages, and in most cases there was no evidence
of a struggle. Nothing suggested anything other than the classic line--they
died off suddenly, likely from overhunting and then climate change wiping
out the last of an already dwindled population. Perhaps, but no one thought to
ask some simple questions: Why was it that not long after the disappearance of
the wooly mammoth the first evidence of civilized man began to appear around
the planet? Organized communities begin to appear in the archeological record.
Human religions became more formalized. Written forms of communication made
their first appearance. And human tools became more sophisticated. Could these
beasts have been sick too? Or carriers of something unknown, something lethal
to other species?

In fact, not long after Yuka’s
demise the beginnings of a different type of human were to be seen around the
world, from southern France to the mountains of Peru, to the headwaters of the
Tigris and Euphrates rivers in Turkey, and on to the Yangtze River valley. In
time, six civilizations of new humans would arise independently, part of a
“revolution” involving the domestication of plants and animals and humanity’s
desire for a sedentary lifestyle. Compared to the hunter-gather humans of
before, these new peoples showed great skill at growing things, producing and
storing food surpluses, and reproducing quickly. It was not long before their
growing numbers, either through conflict or voluntarily, demanded a governing
elite to manage and protect them all.

And so the State was born.

Back into the future, Scientists in
India and Japan, with Yuka’s well-preserved remains now in their hands, went to
great effort at perfecting techniques to clone a wooly mammoth with viable stem
cells harvested from Yuka’s well-preserved serum.

Meanwhile, Yuka, now drained of her
precious serum, made trips around the world to exhibition after exhibition, on
every major continent, and in city after city where there was money to be made
in the name of science and education. No one ever gave thought to the idea that
Yuka and others like her might be a serious health problem in disguise.
Millions saw these animals and therefore millions were inadvertently exposed to
something unknown because no one even knew it existed. Now, in turn, these
infected millions unwittingly exposed others through something as simple as the
touch from a hand, one of the most common of customs with these civilized
humans. And with each touch or direct contact with the contaminated objects
they handled, people became infected again and again with an ever stronger
home-grown alien.

The human race, over seven billion
strong inside it’s taken-for-granted fortress of proud science, progress,
prosperity, and public health, now met a Trojan Horse that carried a silent,
odorless, airborne, hardy pathogen that no one sensed because all were unaware.
It’s entry into a host triggered no immediate reaction or symptoms that would
have alarmed authorities. No one knew what they didn’t know. And as people all
over the world ran to and fro, the Trojan Mammoth germ successfully entered
most of mankind unnoticed, thanks to a pathogen of ancient origin, long frozen
in time, now brought to life essentially because the planet had gotten
warmer. 

CHAPTER 41

Katie briefed Sarah on
everything that had taken place. She passed along what Ben thought should
happen next as far as the testing of the mammoth’s DNA. She also told Sarah
that Ben was planning to go to the site where the mammoth was found to do some
soil samples and look for anything else that could possibly provide a clue to
what was causing the disease.

“Seems like a sound plan,” said Sarah. “When do
you expect to have something on the negative blood test in Texas?”

“Sometime after seven this evening. I’ll stick
around to see what I can find out and let you know as soon as I have the
doctor’s report,” said Katie.

“I am going to let you brief all of this at
today’s call, if that’s alright with you. I will field any questions you don’t
feel comfortable answering. Just let me know,” said Sarah.

“Got it,” said Katie. “I’m going to my office to
brush up on everything and get my thoughts together. I will be in your
conference room for the DVC about a quarter ‘til two.”

“That should be fine. See you then.”

Katie stopped by the cafeteria on her way back to
her office. She was going to have her usual, a Diet Coke and Snickers bar. That
should hold her until after the call, she thought. As she was checking out, the
sense that she was being watched overwhelmed her again. There were several
groups of people eating their lunch and one man off to the side with a
newspaper. She hesitated for a moment and no one looked her way, so she left
for her office thinking nothing of it.

Back in her office she checked her email. Nothing
from Mary or Ben. There were more blood bank samples to analyze, so she entered
them into the computer and started the program. There was an email from Beth,
so she opened it to find the death-versus-age data she needed to conduct her
life expectancy analysis, ready to get started as soon as the DVC was over.

Right on time she entered the Director’s
conference room, and found Sarah discussing the findings so far with a person
she didn’t know.

“Hi Katie, I would like you to meet Dr. Kent
Smythe. He is from the National Institute of Health or NIH, and he will be
leading the DNA testing of the mammoth. Katie, if I remember correctly, you
said the Russians were already testing the DNA of the victims and live subjects
believed to be infected. Is that correct?” asked Sarah.

“Yes. In one of Ben’s emails he indicated that
they would like to compare the test results on the mammoth with those of
deceased and live subjects to see if they can draw any conclusions,” said
Katie.

“First, I would like to say I’m really impressed
with what you and Dr. Shah have been able to figure out. I think this will lead
us in the right direction and to some treatment,” said Dr. Smythe. “I have a
team ready to start work immediately. Who do we need to see to arrange for
access to the remains?”

“I am not sure if it belongs to the Indians,
Japanese, or Russians, or if it is jointly controlled. Let me email Ben after the
meeting to find out who can give us permission,” said Katie. “I’ll also check
with our Smithsonian authorities.” 

“Good idea,” said Sarah. “I would imagine it
shouldn’t be a problem since they know that there is a positive link to SDX.”

They all turned their heads toward the screen as
they saw the other groups assemble for the meeting. They all were aware of the
news, because Sarah had made the obligatory advance calls, but this meeting
would give them the chance to ask questions.

The acting Secretary, Dr. Lawrence Hill, started
the meeting by congratulating the CDC Washington team on the progress they had
made.

“Katie, would you mind giving us a brief summary
to start things off?” asked Larry

“Certainly, sir,” said Katie “The mammoth has been
linked directly to SDX through our screening tests. We are now in the process
of getting permission to do DNA testing on the mammoth’s remains. The testing
will be conducted by Dr. Smythe, who it sitting to my right. Dr. Shah, who is
in Moscow, will be traveling to the site where the mammoth was found to conduct
research. On another note, we now have our second negative sample for SDX. My
daughter and a blood donor in Austin, TX. The Atlanta CDC has arranged for an
examination of the blood donor once he or she is located. We expect to have
some information later this evening with any luck,” said Katie.

“Excellent work,” said Larry. Anything else?”

“I do have one other thing. My assistant has
assembled a large amount of data regarding the ages of the deceased in the U.S.
over the last ten days. I hope to use that information to predict the death
rate in weeks or months to come and the life expectancy of individuals based on
their current age,” said Katie.

“Thank you. Our most recent statistics indicate we
are still losing about 300,000 per day in the U.S. Do you have any estimate at
this point of how high that will go over time?” asked Larry.

“My back of the envelope calculation, based on
limited data, is about 1.5 million people a day when it peaks, but I don’t know
when it could reach that level,” said Katie.

“Well, we should prepare. We’ll need to be more
proactive with the States,” said Larry.

“It might be good if we shared some of this
information with the States and the public for that matter,” said Katie, realizing
that her comments would infuriate Jim Redman. She had already made an enemy of
him and her plan to keep a low profile clearly wasn’t working. She just
couldn’t help herself.

Jim Redman’s response was instant, and Katie could
feel his resentment emanating through the conferencing screen. It was
uncomfortable, but she knew she had brought it on herself.

“As I have said before, that topic is not
appropriate for this forum. The President will make that decision personally.
End of discussion.”

Larry, noted the tension in the air.

“Ok, does anyone else have anything more to
report?” he asked.

The room was silent. Jim Redman’s stomach was
churning over how Katie had controlled the meeting. She was just an analyst and
needed to be put in her place. He would make a call after the meeting. His
thoughts were interrupted by Dr. Hill.

“Jim, we may need the President to make a call to
get an okay to examine these mammoth remains,” said Larry.

Jim nodded in agreement.

“So, if there are no other questions that wraps it
up. Keep us all informed about what you discover on the Texas blood donor,”
said Larry.

Katie was happy the camera was turned off. She
noticed she was perspiring. A combination of stress over the situation and
anger at what a jackass Redman was being, she thought to herself.

“I think I really pissed Jim off,” said Katie
offhandedly.

“Don’t worry about it,” said Sarah. “You are
right. We have to start pointing people in the right direction by providing
information. We can’t keep it all to ourselves. I am not sure who he thinks he
is protecting. And I really don’t understand why the President doesn’t want to
share what we know.”

“Maybe Redman thinks we will find the cure first
and then he can use that as leverage with other world leaders. Or use the
knowledge to let other societies who we do not favor, like North Korea, just
die off,” said Katie.

“I don’t think he is that bright or that
diabolical,” said Sarah. “I just think he is misguided or knows something we
don’t.”

“Well, I am about ready to share the information
if someone else doesn’t,” said Katie with a hint of anger.

“Now, don’t do anything rash. You know our loyalty
is to the President. Let him make the decision when to inform the public. He
has the big picture. You don’t,” Sarah said pointedly.

“I guess you are right. I am going to head back to
my office to see if there are any new developments. Nice meeting you Dr.
Smythe,” said Katie.

“The same here. And please call me Kent.”

“OK, I will see you later, Kent.”

Katie called Rob on his cell phone to let him know
she would be late this evening. She explained in cryptic terms what was going
on and she was sure Rob understood. Rob told Katie that the second pod was in
place at the Center and they had already hooked up the electricity to the first
pod. The construction was going well.

“That’s great,” said Katie. Tell the kids I love
them and give them hugs for me.”

“I sure will, good-bye.”

Back at her desk, Katie started on her work with
the analysis of the life expectancy problem, but now she was losing interest.
All she could think about was the new negative donor. She wanted that
information. She felt somehow that it would be the key to a cure.

It was almost dinner time, so she stopped back by
the cafeteria before it closed. She grabbed a sandwich, Diet Coke and another Snickers
bar. “The dinner of champions,” she said sarcastically to herself.

The cafeteria was empty except for a few workers.
Yet still again, she had that awful feeling that someone was watching her.

Back in her office, she tried to convince herself
that she was just spooking herself with thoughts of being spied on, as she
worked through the data that Beth had provided. It was now 7:30 p.m. and still
no call or email from Mary. She was starting to think maybe she should just go
home and find out tomorrow when she received the email she had been waiting
for.

Hi Katie,

We located the subject. Her family agreed to let us
examine her. I have attached the doctor’s report. Please let me know if you
have any questions. If you want, you can call the doctor directly.

Best regards,

Mary

Katie opened the attachment and printed it out.
She went over to the printer and started to read the report. “The subject is a
female, 32 years old, appears to be in good health, presents with Down syndrome,
but has well-developed mental and motor skills for her condition.”

Katie stopped reading right there. How could she
have been so stupid to not have assumed the obvious? They lost almost a whole
week because she wasn’t willing to accept that Hope’s Down syndrome could have
prevented her infection.

Katie went back to her computer and emailed the report
to Sarah and Ben, writing,

Ben/Sarah,

You were right Ben. The negative blood sample in Austin
comes from a 32-year-old woman who has Down syndrome. The one thing this woman
has in common with Hope is this disability. Sarah, just to confirm, I plan on
having the staff and students at my husband’s Independent Living Center tested
tomorrow. There are about forty students and several staff with Downs and the
other students have a mix of other disabilities. This should be a good way to
confirm that this is not just a coincidence. We’ll work with parental
permissions too.

Good night,

Katie

Katie made a quick call to Rob to let him know she
was on her way. There was no answer, so she figured he had thought she would be
really late and planned to surprise him by turning up early. Katie turned off
her computer and her office light and headed to the garage to collect her car
for a long quiet ride home.