Strong Ricin Poison Patient is immune to the deadly poison

German patient is immune to deadly poison ricin

Ricin is one of the most toxic substances in the world. The plant poison was also used for biological warfare. So far, no effective antidote is known. However, there are people who are immune to ricin. Three of these people are known worldwide, one of them comes from Germany.

Ricin is considered one of the deadliest poison ever

Ricin is one of the deadliest poisons in the world. In the German war weapon control law the plant poison is listed as a weapon of war. Throughout history, the material has been used repeatedly for biological warfare and in recent years also in the context of bioterrorist attacks. In April 2013, the poison got into the headlines internationally because the FBI intercepted a letter with ricin to the then US President Obama. So far, no effective antidote is known. But some people are immune to the dangerous poison. One of them comes from Germany.

Ricin is a poisonous protein from the seeds of the miracle tree. The substance is considered one of the deadliest poisons in the world. Some people with rare diseases are immune to the plant poison - also a German. (Image: Nina Hoff / fotolia.com)

Umbrella Attack with plant poison

Ricin became known worldwide when in 1978 the Bulgarian dissident Georgi Markov was murdered in London. The University Hospital Münster (UKM) writes in a message:

"A reporter is waiting in the city on the bus, as a passing passerby apparently touched him accidentally with the tip of his umbrella on the leg - four days later, the man is dead."

And further: "The autopsy shows that the plant poison ricin was injected by means of a millimeter-sized platinum ball in the leg - the legend of the umbrella attack is born."

Although no effective antidote has been found to date, according to the UKM there are three people in the world who have survived the attack: they have a genetic metabolic defect, can not convert the sugar fucose.

One of them is the 20-year-old Jakob (name changed), who has been treated at the UKM since his birth.

Picking mechanism of the poison is now better understood

Jakob, born far too early at 770 grams in 1997, had to undergo surgery for the first time the day after birth. In his first two years of life he often had a high fever.

"For a long time we could not explain why he has the fever over and over again", explains Prof. Dr. med. Thorsten Marquardt, Head of Congenital Metabolic Diseases at the UKM, a news agency dpa reported.

According to the information, a young doctor on the ward finally came on the right track: "He bit down to the fact that Jakob has too many white blood cells," explains the physician.

"Jakob is lucky for research," says Marquardt to the German Press Agency. Thanks to him, one understands the intake mechanism of the poison better today. "Knowing the mechanisms, one can develop antidotes," says the expert.

Ricin is a poisonous protein from the seeds of the miracle tree. Even the dose of a few grains can sometimes be fatal.

"Symptoms of poisoning include vomiting, diarrhea, circulatory and renal failure," explains the toxicologist Prof. Markus Christmann of the University of Mainz in the dpa report.

Only three patients worldwide

A few months ago scientists from the UKM and researchers from the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology at the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IMBA) reported that they had deciphered the mode of action of the natural toxin ricin.

One patient helped: "Almost 20 years ago we met Jakob, who had just this rare metabolic disease. We provided our colleagues in Vienna with skin samples that could be used to decipher the mechanism of action of ricin, "explains Marquardt.

According to the experts, there are two genes that make ricinus lethal. One of them is defective in the patients, so their cells are immune to the poison.

In addition to Jacob, there are only two other people worldwide who are known to have the same defect. Both live in Israel.

Since it is now known that those affected can not produce fucose due to the genetic defect, a therapy could be developed: fucose is artificially added to the patient in Münster.

According to UKM, the rush of fever that forced the boy to spend an entire year in hospital was quickly over thanks to the medication.

Step on the way to the antidote

"The new insights into decoding the mechanism of action of one of the deadliest poisons of all are a prime example of how dealing with rare diseases can not only help affected patients, but also deliver fundamental scientific results that benefit the medical community as a whole," says Marquardt in the message of the UKM.

Her study, which was published in the journal "Cell Research", is another step on the long road to antidotes: "It's still a dream of the future, but we've come one step further."

Rare diseases are not so rare

Jakob has been able to help the doctors, but many other patients often have to wait long or in vain for help.

According to the National Action Alliance for People with Rare Diseases (NAMSE), a disease is considered rare if it affects less than five in 10,000 people.

In Germany alone, around four million people suffer from one of the approximately 6,000 rare diseases that have so far had a name. Across Europe, 30 million patients are affected. Rare diseases are therefore often not so rare.

Because there is a lack of specialists and often effective therapies, the diagnosis is often difficult and lengthy. Promising here is an innovation that was introduced a few years ago at the "Frankfurt Reference Center for Rare Diseases" (FRZSE).

There, young medical students look for the diagnosis of rare diseases. They often recognize these better than older, more experienced physicians.

The NAMSE has been working since 2010 to achieve coordinated action in the area of ​​such suffering - including setting up centers of excellence.

As Christine Mundlos of the Alliance of Chronic Rare Diseases (Axis) explained in the agency message, there are currently 28 centers nationwide.

However, so far there is a lack of a certification process - the clinics can call themselves Fachzentrum. It is being worked on that changes that. (Ad)