![]() As a military or terrorist weapon, botulinum toxin could be disseminated via aerosol or by contamination of water or food supplies, causing widespread casualties. The basis of the phenomenal potency of botulinum toxin is enzymatic the toxin is a zinc proteinase that cleaves neuronal vesicle associated proteins responsible for acetylcholine release into the neuromuscular junction. A single gram of crystalline toxin, evenly dispersed and inhaled, can kill more than one million people. Botulinum neurotoxin poses a major bioweapon threat because of its extreme potency and lethality its ease of production, transport, and misuse and the need for prolonged intensive care among affected persons. Botulinum neurotoxins, causative agents of botulism in humans, are produced by Clostridium botulinum, an anaerobic spore-former Gram positive bacillus.
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