The Poison Review

The New York Times has an interesting piece today in its Science Section that asks an obvious question: Creatures such as puffer fish, floral egg crabs, and blue-ringed octopi all contain incredibly lethal amounts of tetrodotoxin, a neurotoxin that causes paralysis and respiratory arrest by binding to and blocking elements of the fast sodium channel in excitable tissue. So how did these animals develop resistance to their own poison?  Turns out that many of these species have developed sodium channels that resistant to tetrodotoxin.  Moreover, certain snakes have also developed resistant channels and have now become predators of tetrodotoxin-containing amphibians.

TPR once risked life and health to experience a tetrodotoxin buzz.  Click here to read my column describing the adventure at the Emergency Medicine News website.

And also check out this not-to-be-missed excerpt from the classic fugu episode of The Simpsons.  In TPR’s humble opinion, this short clip is one of the funniest things ever on television.