Toxin

Protein-derived toxic substances found in some organisms, fungi, bacteria, plants, etc. Botulinum toxin is a product secreted by the bacteria Clostridium botulinum, one of the most toxic substances known. This substance blocks nerve impulses. Over the past two decades, it has been effectively and safely used in neurological cases (for children with cerebral palsy, for treating strabismus), plastic surgery, and dermatology (for cosmetic correction of facial lines and treating excessive sweating). Under anaerobic conditions, bacilli of tetanus produce a potent exotoxin composed of neurotropic tetanospasmin (causing muscle spasms) and tetanolysin (lysing erythrocytes). The tetanus toxin spreads along nerve tracts, reaching motor neurons of the anterior horns of the spinal cord and the brainstem, where it resides, increases their sensitivity, leading to muscle spasms (localized tetanus). When there is a high concentration of the toxin, a portion of it reaches the peripheral nerve endings throughout the body, and the impulse reaches the corresponding CNS motor neurons, resulting in generalized tetanus.

Source | Glossary of Most Commonly Used Biomedical Terms and Concepts | Lithuanian University of Health Sciences | Academician Professor Antanas Praškevičius, Professor Laima Ivanovienė