Inactivation of ricin by constituents present in a skin decontamination lotion

Ricin is a proteinaceous toxin, listed on the schedules of both the chemical and biological weapons conventions. The ease of accessibility to the Ricinus communis plant and toxin extraction makes ricin a viable concern for use of intentional release and causal effects. The adverse effects following exposure to the toxin are caused by the...

Pharmacokinetics of three oximes in a guinea pig model and efficacy of combined oxime therapy

Organophosphorus nerve agents (NA) inhibit acetylcholinesterase (AChE) which results in the over-stimulation of both the central and peripheral nervous systems, creating a toxic syndrome that can be lethal if left untreated (Cannard, 2006). It is standard practice to treat Sarin (GB) intoxication with an oxime, an antimuscarinic such as atropine...

The impact of skin decontamination on the time window for effective treatment of percutaneous VX exposure

The main goal of the present study was to obtain insight into depot formation and penetration following percutaneous VX poisoning, in order to identify an appropriate decontamination window that can enhance or support medical countermeasures. The study was executed in two phases, using the hairless guinea pig as an animal model. In the first...

Increasing nerve agent treatment efficacy by P-glycoprotein inhibition

One of the shortcomings of current treatment of nerve agent poisoning is that not all drugs effectively penetrate the blood-brain barrier (BBB), whereas most nerve agents easily do. P-glycoprotein (Pgp) efflux transporters at the BBB may contribute to this aspect. It was previously shown that Pgp inhibition by tariquidar enhanced the efficacy of...

Neuroprotective effects of riluzole in early phase Parkinson's disease on clinically relevant parameters in the marmoset MPTP model

The present study evaluates neuroprotection in a marmoset MPTP (1-methyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine) model representing early Parkinson's disease (PD). The anti-glutamatergic compound riluzole is used as a model compound for neuroprotection. The compound is one of the few protective compounds used in the clinic for a neurodegenerative disorder....

REM sleep behavior disorder in the marmoset MPTP model of early Parkinson disease

Study Objectives: Sleep problems are a common phenomenon in most neurological and psychiatric diseases. In Parkinson disease (PD), for instance, sleep problems may be the most common and burdensome non-motor symptoms in addition to the well-described classical motor symptoms. Since sleep disturbances generally become apparent in the disease...

Diagnosis of Botulinum Toxin exposure in rats (Poster)

Involvement of caspases and transmembrane metalloproteases in sulphur mustard-induced microvesication in adult human skin in organ culture: Directions for therapy

While skin is a major target for sulphur mustard (HD), a therapy to limit HD-induced vesication is currently not available. Since it is supposed that apoptotic cell death and proteolytic digestion of extracellular matrix proteins by metalloproteases are initiating factors for blister formation, we have explored whether inhibition of these...

Activity-based protein profiling reveals broad reactivity of the nerve agent sarin

Elucidation of noncholinesterase protein targets of organophosphates, and nerve agents in particular, may reveal additional mechanisms for their high toxicity as well as clues for novel therapeutic approaches toward intoxications with these agents. Within this framework, we here describe the synthesis of the activity-based probe 3, which...

Proteomic assessment of sulfur mustard-induced protein adducts and other protein modifications in human epidermal keratinocytes

Therapeutic relevance of inhibitors of MMPs or of caspases in HD-induced injury in the ex vivo human skin model

In order to prevent microvesication, direct and indirect inhibitors of matrix metalloproteases (MMPs) can be used to fully prevent HD-induced epidermal-dermal separation in organ-cultured human skin pieces. The MMP inhibitors show no effect on the massive epidermal cell damage caused by HD. Interestingly, a pancaspase inhibitor causes a...

Sulfur mustard causes caspase-mediated cleavage of cytoskeletal keratins

In order to study the toxic mechanism of action of sulfur mustard (HD), we examined protein expression in control and HD-treated cultured human epidermal keratinocytes (HEK) at 24 h after exposure to 100 μM HD. Protein patterns of cell lysates were prepared using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis with an immobilized pH gradient in the first...