Novichok is a ‘dangerous and sophisticated’ Soviet-era nerve agent — here’s how it works and why it’s so lethal

Peter Nicholls/Reuters

• A man and woman who were sickened after coming into contact with the nerve agent Novichok are in critical condition in the UK.
• The couple has been identified as Charlie Rowley, 45, and Dawn Sturgess, 44.
• The poisonings happened on Saturday, near the site of a March incident in which Novichok was likely used in the attempted murder of Sergei Skripal, a former Russian spy, and his daughter Yulia.
• Novichok is a class of chemicals that means “newcomer” in Russian.
• Nerve agents like Novichok attack the spaces between nerves and muscles to overwhelm essential bodily functions.
• Enough of the chemical can stop a victim’s breathing or heart, leading to death.

Nerve agents kill people with gruesome efficiency, yet only after triggering unconscionable suffering through their powerful poisoning effects.

Authorities in the UK are looking into how a couple came into contact with the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok. They are the latest to be sickened by the chemical, which officials believe was used in the attempted murder of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in March.

See the rest of the story at Business Insider

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