Botulinum
Toxin, also known as
Botox, is an
acetylcholine inhibitor secreted in small amounts by the
anaerobic bacterium Clostridium Botulinum. The toxin causes
flaccid muscle paralysis, manifested in
stomach cramps,
intestinal disturbances, and
blurred vision.
Death usually ensues within three days. The bacteria is most commonly found in anaerobically packaged foods (
canned beans, etc) that have not been properly
packaged. The Clostridium Botulinum bacteria is closely related to
Clostridium Tetani, which causes
tetanus (
lockjaw).
Botox is
the most poisonous chemical known to man, with a
lethal dosage of 1
microgram. For comparison,
VX nerve gas (remember the movie
The Rock?) has a lethal dosage of 10
milligrams, and
ricin (found in
castor beans) has a lethal dosage of 1 milligram. Botulinum Toxin has been considered as a
chemical/biological weapons threat, although it is somewhat more difficult to produce than alternatives.
Curiously enough, some people pay large sums of money every few months to have small amounts of
botox injected into their faces, to smooth out their
wrinkles.
I'd rather just look my age, thank you very much.
Your weatherman can't move his eyebrows:
Apparently, nearly all
actors and TV
anchorpeople can't move their
eyebrows or upper
facial muscles, because they've all had botox
injections. This is apparently angering many
movie directors, since the actors can't
emote.
Botox is also said to still mild
muscle spasms and is rumored to help
migraine headaches (although the latter hasn't been
approved). The
FDA has also approved it's use in treating
Cervical Dystonia. I've also heard rumors that it's supposed to become available
over-the-counter.
This
news comes with so many other news
stories about
accidental overdoses and
hospital errors.
Be very, very frightened, Arthur Dent.
m4c837h reports that
Iraq manufactured enough of the stuff to
give a facelift to kill the
human race 1000 times over, in a single
factory. Maybe it's not that hard to manufacture after all.