It was previously postulated, based on indirect evidence, that Clostridium botulinum type B produces neurotoxin which is initially of low toxicity but which then becomes activated to highly toxic form by the action of an endogenous enzyme(s). The first direct in vitro experimental evidence in support of this hypothesis is presented here. The mildly active toxin (progenitor toxin) produced by C....

To determine whether the potency of botulinum toxin A (BTA) decreases after being reconstituted with normal saline and stored in refrigerator, we injected one side of the extensor digitorum brevis muscle with 2.5 units of botulinum toxin A that had been immediately reconstituted with saline, and the contralateral side with identical material that had been reconstituted and stored in a refrigera...

OBJECTIVE In recent years there has been an increasing use of the botulinum neurotoxins for the management of conditions characterised by detrusor overactivity. Early studies showed promising results in an area where few options previously existed between pharmacotherapy and surgery. This has led to an urgent need to assess the wide range of techniques and therapies available, as well as the ef...

Sensitive and rapid detection of botulinum neurotoxins (BoNTs), the most poisonous substances known to date, is essential for studies of medical applications of BoNTs and detection of poisoned food, as well as for response to potential bioterrorist threats. Currently, the most common method of BoNT detection is the mouse bioassay. While this assay is sensitive, it is slow, quite expensive, has ...

We studied the safety and efficacy of 0 U, 50 U, 100 U, 150 U (five sites), 86 Usub and 100 Usub (three sites) botulinum toxin type A (BoNTA; BOTOX); Allergan, Inc., Irvine, CA, USA) for the prophylaxis of chronic tension-type headache (CTTH). Three hundred patients (62.3% female; mean age 42.6 years) enrolled. For the primary endpoint, the mean change from baseline in the number of TTH-free da...

The authors evaluated the long-term efficacy and safety of botulinum toxin type A (BTX-A) in poststroke spasticity patients who completed a 12-week placebo-controlled study and received multiple open-label treatments with 200 to 240 U BTX-A for 42 weeks. Significant and sustained improvements were observed for Disability Assessment and Ashworth scores. Adverse events were generally mild. This e...

We report the case of a 49-year-old woman who has the rare combination of myasthenia gravis and cervical dystonia. She was treated with botulinum toxin type A with good response and no evidence of deterioration of the myasthenic symptoms. We therefore conclude that it is possible to use botulinum toxin in the presence of defective neuromuscular transmission.

The heavy and light chains of botulinum A toxin were separated by anion exchange chromatography. Their intracellular actions were studied using bovine adrenal chromaffin cells permeabilized with streptolysin O. Purified light chain inhibited the Ca2+-stimulated [3H]noradrenaline release with a half-maximal effect at about 1.8 nM. The inhibition was incomplete. Heavy chain up to 28 nM was neithe...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the beneficial effect of botulinum toxin A (Botox) injection into the subscapularis muscle on intractable hemiplegic shoulder pain. METHODS Six stroke patients with intractable hemiplegic shoulder pain were included. Botulinum toxin A was injected into the subscapularis muscle. Intractable hemiplegic shoulder pain was evaluated using an 11-point numerical rating scale. P...

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS This study evaluated the efficacy of botulinum toxin type A injected into the interarytenoid muscle to treat recalcitrant vocal process granulomas. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective clinical review at a tertiary care center. METHODS Eight patients with vocal process granulomas refractory to a variety of prior treatments including surgical resection, proton pump inhibitor ther...