Novichok agents

Novichok agents are a group of organophosphorus nerve agents developed in a Soviet-era program. They disrupt nervous-system signaling by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase.

Acetylcholinesterase: An enzyme that breaks down the neurotransmitter acetylcholine at nerve junctions. Novichok agents inhibit this enzyme, causing acetylcholine to accumulate.
Foliant program: A Soviet-era research program associated with the development of Novichok nerve agents. It is the development program most directly linked to the agents.
Sergei and Yulia Skripal poisoning: The 2018 poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury, England, attributed by the UK to a Novichok agent. It became the most prominent publicly attributed Novichok attack.
Sarin: A volatile organophosphorus nerve agent developed in Germany before World War II. Sarin is an established nerve agent with the same broad enzyme target but a different history and chemistry.
Acetylcholine: A neurotransmitter used by nerve cells to signal muscles, glands, and other neurons. Its buildup after enzyme inhibition drives the agents’ characteristic overstimulation of nerves.
Soviet chemical weapons program: The state-directed effort to develop and produce chemical weapons in the Soviet Union. Novichok research emerged within this larger weapons enterprise.
Dawn Sturgess poisoning: The 2018 fatal poisoning of Dawn Sturgess in Amesbury, England, after exposure to a discarded container linked to the Salisbury attack. The case showed how abandoned material from an attack could expose others.
VX: A persistent organophosphorus nerve agent developed in the United Kingdom in the 1950s. VX provides a well-documented comparison for persistence, toxicity, and treaty controls.
Organophosphorus compounds: Compounds containing carbon–phosphorus bonds or organic groups bonded to phosphorus. Novichok agents belong to this broad chemical family.
Vil Mirzayanov: A Soviet chemical-weapons scientist who publicly disclosed the existence of the Novichok program. His disclosures brought the previously secret program to international attention.

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