Confirmed cases of childhood exposure to cyanide are rare despite multiple potential sources including inhalation of fire smoke, ingestion of toxic household and workplace substances, and ingestion of cyanogenic foods. Because of its infrequent occurrence, medical professionals may have difficulty recognizing cyanide poisoning, confirming its presence, and treating it in pediatric patients. The...

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz), a staple crop for millions of sub-Saharan Africans, contains high levels of cyanogenic glycosides which protect it against herbivory. However, cyanogens have also been proposed to play a role in nitrogen transport from leaves to roots. Consistent with this hypothesis, analyses of the distribution and activities of enzymes involved in cyanide metabolism provid...

1. Mitochondria isolated from cultures of Acanthamoeba castellanii exhibit respiratory control and oxidize alpha-oxoglutarate, succinate and NADH with ADP:O ratios of about 2.4, 1.4 and 1.25 respectively. 2. Mitochondria from cultures of which the respiration was stimulated up to 50% by 1mm-cyanide (type-A mitochondria) and from cyanide-sensitive cultures (type-B mitochondria) had similar respi...

Gametangia of the aquatic phycomycete Allomyces macrogynus have a cyanide- and antimycin A-insensitive respiration, which is sensitive to salicylhydroxamic acid (alternative respiration). Propyl gallate is also an inhibitor of this alternative pathway, and propyl gallate is more efficient than hydroxamic acid. Gametangial respiration is insensitive to propyl gallate, but propyl gallate sensitiv...

Since both cyanide and azide have been shown to block the oxidation of cytochrome c by cytochrome oxidase (l), it has been generally accepted that the toxicity of these substances is due to this property. A considerable amount of evidence has accumulated, however, indicating that aside and cyanide do not inhibit respiration in a parallel manner under all conditions. Thus Stannard (2) was able t...

The US government considers cyanide to be among the most likely agents of chemical terrorism. Cyanide differs from many other biological or chemical agents for which little or no defense is available because its individual and public health effects are largely remediable through appropriate preparedness and response. Because the toxicity of the cyanide antidote currently available in the United...

Cyanide-resistant, alternative respiration in Nicotiana tabacum L. cv Xanthi-nc was analyzed in liquid suspension cultures using O(2) uptake and calorimetric measurements. In young cultures (4-8 d after transfer), cyanide inhibited O(2) uptake by up to 40% as compared to controls. Application of 20 mum salicylic acid (SA) to young cells increased cyanide-resistant O(2) uptake within 2 h. Develo...