Ricin and Saxitoxin: Two Natural Products That Became Chemical Weapons,Journal of Chemical Education

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Ricin and Saxitoxin: Two Natural Products That Became Chemical Weapons
Journal of Chemical Education ( IF 2.5 ) Pub Date : 2020-01-03 , DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.9b00841
Miguel A. Sierra _{1,

2} , Roberto Martínez-Álvarez _{1,

2}

Affiliation

Ricin and saxitoxin are highly toxic natural products that have been weaponized and are included in Schedule 1 of the Chemical Weapons Convention. Both toxins are available from natural sources, and they can be used as homemade chemical weapons for terrorist purposes. The availability of ricin is high because the shrub Ricinus communis is widespread worldwide, and access to Ricinus seeds (castor beans are the source of ricin) is easy; its use for illegal purposes has happened several times. Contrary to ricin, saxitoxin is difficult to isolate from natural sources, or to obtain by chemical synthesis, which makes the use of saxitoxin in terrorist actions unlikely. Additionally, the mechanisms of action of both toxins are totally different. Ricin targets the ribosome while saxitoxin targets the Na-channels in the cell membrane. In both cases cell death occurs very efficiently. The potency of both chemicals makes ricin and saxitoxin excellent leads for the development of new drugs for rightful applications, including, among others, treatment of cancer or anesthesia.

中文翻译：

蓖麻毒素和毒毒素：两种天然产物变成了化学武器

蓖麻毒素和毒毒素是高毒性的天然产物，已被武器化，并列入《化学武器公约》附表1。两种毒素均可以从自然资源中获得，并且可以用作恐怖分子目的的自制化学武器。蓖麻毒素的利用率很高，因为灌木蓖麻（Ricinus communis）在世界范围内分布广泛，并且可以进入蓖麻（Ricinus）种子（蓖麻籽是蓖麻毒素的来源）很容易；将其用于非法目的已经发生了好几次。与蓖麻毒蛋白相反，毒杆菌毒素很难从自然资源中分离出来，也很难通过化学合成法获得，这使得在恐怖行为中不太可能使用毒毒素。另外，两种毒素的作用机理完全不同。蓖麻毒素靶向核糖体，而毒素则靶向细胞膜中的钠通道。在这两种情况下，细胞死亡都非常有效地发生。两种化学药品的功效使蓖麻毒素和毒毒素成为开发适用于包括癌症或麻醉等在内的正当用途新药的极佳先导。

更新日期：2020-01-03

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