The US government had previous funded MIT to do research into how carbon nanotubes could be used to detect nerve toxins including Sarin following a terrorist attack on the Tokyo subway which killed 12 people in 1995.
With the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) awaiting action by the U.S. Senate, the treaty's supporters are asserting that the Tokyo subway poison gas attack demonstrates the need for U.S. ratification.
They are believed to be investigating whether there is any link between the attacks and a warning issued by the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo last week of a possible terrorist attack.