How are nerve agents absorbed?
Although all nerve agents penetrate clothing and skin, the high volatility of the G agents makes them primarily an inhalation hazard. These agents evaporate quickly and are considered nonpersistent in the environment. In contrast, VX persists in the environment for weeks. On initial release, VX is also an inhalation hazard. Moreover, because this agent penetrates skin more easily than the G agents, it is considered a contact hazard. Based on animal studies, rapid respiratory absorption of 1 mg of any of these agents is lethal to humans. What does the term “aging” refer to? When a nerve agent initially binds with AChE, the interaction is reversible; the undocking of the poison will restore normal function to the enzyme. With time, however, these agents lose an alkyl group, which changes the kinetics of the enzyme-poison complex, permanently deactivating the enzyme. This process, termed aging, occurs at different rates. Aging of the soman-enzyme complex is the fastest; it is 50% complete
