Toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems, which consist of an intracellular toxin and its antidote (antitoxin), are encoded by ubiquitous genetic modules in prokaryotes. Commonly, the activity of a toxin is inhibited by its antitoxin under normal growth conditions. However, antitoxins are degraded in response to environmental stress, and toxins liberated from antitoxins consequently induce cell death or gr...

Botulinum toxins (BoNTs), of which there are seven serotypes, are among the most potent neurotoxins, with serotypes A, B and E causing human botulism. Antitoxins form the first line of treatment for botulism, and functional, highly sensitive in vitro methods for toxin neutralization are needed to replace the current in vivo methods used for determination of antitoxin potency. In this preliminar...

1. Both diphtheria and tetanus toxin and their antitoxins arc electro-positive, that is, they pass to the cathode under the influence of an electric current. 2. The character of the charge is not altered by a change in the reaction of the solvent. 3. The combination of toxin and antitoxin would seem to represent not a true chemical reaction but the adsorption of one colloid by another.