Since the anthrax spore letter attacks in the fall of 2001, the state of our defense against potential biologic agents has been paramount. For the first time, meaningful funds were spent on biodefense. The goal of this project is to consolidate knowledge on the current status of the development of countermeasures against biologic and bioterrorism agents and emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) of interest.

Historically, vaccines, immunologic agents, and drugs have been at the forefront of efforts to defend against naturally occurring as well as purposefully disseminated infectious diseases and toxins. For over one hundred years, vaccines have been used to successfully control infectious diseases. Will a similar method of prevention be successful against agents of biowarfare and bioterrorism?

Investigators are invited to contribute articles reporting original research as well as review articles highlighting past and current efforts to develop countermeasures against biowarfare and bioterrorism agents and emerging infectious diseases. Articles on vaccines should include discussions on safety in humans. Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

• Existing and new vaccines against biothreat agents and emerging infectious diseases
• Historical perspective on the development and use (intentional and unintentional) of biothreat agents for population control
• Forces or factors (host factors, vector density, etc.) supporting and/or favoring emerging and resurging infectious diseases and models of bioterrorism impact and response
• Role of active monitoring for signs and symptoms of infection with biological agents
• The role of immune correlates and surrogate markers in the development of countermeasures and existing and emerging diagnostics
• Regulatory issues pertinent to developing biothreat and emerging infectious disease countermeasures, emergency use authorizations, and stockpiles versus readiness
• The application of “one world, one health” concepts to prevention or treatment of EIDs

Articles published in this special issue will not be subject to the journal's Article Processing Charges.

Before submission authors should carefully read over the journal's Author Guidelines, which are located at http://www.hindawi.com/journals/apm/guidelines/. Prospective authors should submit an electronic copy of their complete manuscript through the journal Manuscript Tracking System at http://mts.hindawi.com/ according to the following timetable: