Botulinum neurotoxins: More and more diverse and fascinating toxic proteins

摘要

Botulism is a rare but severe disease mainly resulting from food poisoning or intestinal colonization. Food poisoning, including botulism, certainly occurred in ancient times. However, this disease was not recognized as a distinct pathological entity until the latter half of the 18th century. A first detailed description of the clinical symptoms was provided by Kerner in Germany (1815-1817), who investigated numerous cases in southwest Germany resulting from the consumption of blood sausage. The disease was called "sausage poisoning". Notably, Kerner concluded that a toxin develops in blood sausage under anaerobic conditions that it is lethal at very small doses and induces flaccid paralysis.