Clostridium botulinum

C. botulinum gram stain

gram positive

C. botulinum oxygen requirements

obligate anaerobe

C. botulinum morphology

bacillus

C. botulinum function

produce heat-resistant endospores and ferment sugars and amino acids

where is C. botulinum found

soil, lake sediment, decaying vegetation

disease caused by C. botulinum

botulism

botulism

paralytic illness caused by a nerve toxin produced by C. botulinum

the 5 types of botulism

foodborne, wound, inadvertent, infant, adult intestinal

foodborne botulism cause

eating foods that contain the botulism toxin

sign of botulism toxin in canned foods

puffy cans

wound botulism cause

a wound infected with C. botulinum

ways to get a wound infection

injecting drugs with infected needle or injury in contaminated soil

inadvertent botulism

accidental overdose of toxin

infant botulism cause

consuming spores or bacteria, which germinate and release toxin

why infants are more susceptible to C. botulinum toxin

they don’t have developed gut microbiomes

adult intestinal botulism cause

consuming spores

toxin action

prevents snare proteins from guiding Acetylcholine (Ach) to nerve membrane

toxin effect

Ach doesn’t release, preventing muscles from contracting, resulting in paralysis

Acetylcholine (Ach)

neurotransmitter that causes muscles to contract

8 known botulism toxins

A, B, C, D, E, F, G, F/A

most common botulism toxin to cause disease

toxin A

toxin used in BOTOX

toxin A

___% of foodborne outbreaks are caused by toxin ___

50; A

what happens when toxin A is injected as BOTOX

it doesn’t stay in tissues, but gets into central nervous system

botulism symptoms

muscle weakness, double and blurry vision, drooping eyelids, slurred speech, difficulty swallowing, dry mouth

infant botulism symptoms

lethargic, feed poorly, constipated, weak cry

effect of untreated botulism

paralysis of respiratory muscles and death

when do symptoms occur in foodborne botulism

4-36 hours

who first documented signs and symptoms of botulism

Justinus Andreas Christian Kerner

how did Kerner document symptoms of botulism

ate small amounts of sour sausage and documented effects

who discovered the action of the botulism toxin

Vernon Brookes

what was BOTOX FDA approved for

muscle spasms in 1989

who first suggested BOTOX got rid of wrinkles

an ophthalmologist

____ total cases in 2024

93

how is botulism tested for

blood serum analysis for BT toxin

most important thing when diagnosing botulism

it must be caught early

treatment

antitoxin that blocks toxin from circulating in blood

what does the antitoxin work on

toxins outside of the cell

when is the antitoxin effective

early in infection

who has access to the antitoxin

the CDC

how is wound botulism treated

antibiotics

why aren’t antibiotics very effective

the toxin causes harm, not the bacteria