Which of the following is NOT a CDC Category A biological agent?

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Multiple Choice

Which of the following is NOT a CDC Category A biological agent?

Category A agents are the highest-priority biological threats because they can be spread easily and rapidly, cause high mortality, or require extraordinary public health response to manage. Anthrax is a classic Category A threat because its inhalational form can be dispersed as an apparent powder and cause severe, often fatal disease with rapid spread potential. Smallpox is highly contagious from person to person and has a historically very high fatality rate, making it a top Category A concern. Viral hemorrhagic fevers such as Ebola, Marburg, and Lassa fever also fit Category A due to their potential for rapid spread in healthcare and community settings and their high case-fatality rates, which demand aggressive isolation, contact tracing, and public health intervention. Dengue virus does not fit Category A because its transmission requires a specific mosquito vector (Aedes species) and environmental conditions. Its spread is not easily weaponized for rapid, mass dissemination in the way the other agents are, and while dengue can be severe, it does not carry the same level of immediate, large-scale mortality and propagation risk that defines Category A.

Category A agents are the highest-priority biological threats because they can be spread easily and rapidly, cause high mortality, or require extraordinary public health response to manage.

Anthrax is a classic Category A threat because its inhalational form can be dispersed as an apparent powder and cause severe, often fatal disease with rapid spread potential. Smallpox is highly contagious from person to person and has a historically very high fatality rate, making it a top Category A concern. Viral hemorrhagic fevers such as Ebola, Marburg, and Lassa fever also fit Category A due to their potential for rapid spread in healthcare and community settings and their high case-fatality rates, which demand aggressive isolation, contact tracing, and public health intervention.

Dengue virus does not fit Category A because its transmission requires a specific mosquito vector (Aedes species) and environmental conditions. Its spread is not easily weaponized for rapid, mass dissemination in the way the other agents are, and while dengue can be severe, it does not carry the same level of immediate, large-scale mortality and propagation risk that defines Category A.

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