Ricin Toxin: Destructive

Words: 1370
Pages: 6
Open Document
The Ricin Toxin
Destructive. Untreatable. Deadly. Ricin, the byproduct of the production of castor oil, which comes from a plant called Ricinius cummunis, is the perfect toxin (Ricin, 2016). Castor oil is a main ingredient in brake and hydraulic fluid, making it readily abundant. Ricin presents a serious political threat and has been used in assassination attempts against multiple United States presidents. One thing that makes this toxin such a threat is its easy production, easy access, and mass quantities. Because of this, it has been considered a possible chemical weapon (Berwald, 2014). Ricin, in its deadliness, is a very effective toxin as far is its impact on a specimen. Humans have a very low threshold when exposed to high concentrations …show more content…
Ricin poisoning can occur by “aerosol inhalation, ingestion, or injections” (Berwald, 2014). The least dangerous exposure to ricin is dermal, which is usually only deadly when combined with a solvent. The powder form, which has high solubility, can be dissolved in liquid to be injected or ingested. As little of a dose as two milligrams of this toxin can be fatal. The route of contamination can affect the symptoms one experiences when they are poisoned with ricin. For example, symptoms from contamination by inhalation occur within four to eight hours and include “fever, chest tightness, cough, nausea, and joint pain” with eventual respiratory failure and death. When ingested, symptoms take place within two hours and include “abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and bloody diarrhea” (Berwald, 2014). Although the result of ricin poisoning is quite shocking, the malicious process is quite fascinating. It is composed of toxins and hemagglutinins. “The toxins are made up of an A polypeptide chain and a B polypeptide chain, which are joined by a disulfide bond” and the two toxins are RCL III and RCL IV (Berwaldd, 2014). Ricin acts by attacking and killing cells in an organism by attaching to the ribosomes in them. Ribosomes are responsible for protein synthesis (Ricin, 2016). A single molecule of ricin can kill a whole cell by this process: the B portion of the toxin penetrates the cell membrane of a human …show more content…
However, the only successful ricin assassination was the murder of Georgi Markov, who although was a prestigious Bulgarian writer, was not a political figure. The story goes that Markov was walking over the Waterloo bridge in London, when spy, Francesco Gullino, poked him with the tip of an umbrella, injecting the ricin toxin into his bloodstream. Sources explain that Markov experienced a severe reaction within hours and was taken to a local hospital where he passed within three days (Tom, 2016). The most common vehicle of ricin in assassination attempts against US presidents have been through letters. In 2003, a letter addresses to President Bush was intercepted by the US Postal Service because ricin was detected on it. Additionally, in 2013, ricin-laced letters were sent to President Obama and a U.S. Senator, but they were thankfully intercepted by the government (Berwald, 2014). If ricin was used in war on a global scale and in conflicts between governments, innocent people would pay the price. Due to its toxic aerosol properties, whole populations could be affected. Because around “4 metric tons of ricin would be required to achieve 50 percent lethality over an area of 100 [square] km (nearly [square] mi),” its greatest political threat in this case would be to a healthcare system. While a large amount of ricin may not be
Show More

Related Documents: Ricin Toxin: Destructive

Hazardous Materials and Public Awareness Essay examples

Hazardous Materials and Public Awareness Assignment 1 Ricin Weapons of mass destruction utilized by terrorists fall into one of five different types of substances used for that purpose: nuclear weapons, incendiary devices, chemical weapons, explosives and biological weapons. Nuclear weapons work in some cases by a process known as nuclear fission, where the nucleus of an atom splits into two fragments, releasing huge amounts of destructive energy. Other nuclear weapons work by nuclear fusion…

Words 1565 - Pages 7

Chemical Weapons Essay

INTRODUCTION The following research paper has been compiled to provide an insight into Chemical Weapons (CW). It deals with the description and the usage of various chemical reagents used by various countries and their negative effects. The following also shows the policies of countries towards chemical weapons, their stockpiles and their lethality and disposal. The following report also shows the history of chemical warfare, their demilitarisation, proliferation and the various councils set up…

Words 8195 - Pages 33