n. an acute infectious disease of farm animals caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis, which can be transmitted to humans by contact with animal hair, hides, or excrement. In humans the disease attacks either the lungs, causing pneumonia, or the skin, producing severe ulceration (known as malignant pustule). Woolsorter’s disease is a serious infection of the skin or lungs by B. anthracis, affecting those handling wool or pelts (see occupational disease). Untreated anthrax can be fatal but administration of large doses of penicillin or tetracycline is usually effective.
Subjects: Medicine and Health — Science and Mathematics.