ABSTRACT
Background Botulinum neurotoxins (BoNTs) are produced by the anaerobic Clostridium botulinum species of bacteria and are the cause of botulism, a life-threatening neuroparalytic disease. ey are extremely potent food poisons, with a mouse LD50 of 0.1 ng/kg for type A [1,2]. Aerosol exposure of BoNTs does not occur naturally, but could be attempted by bioterrorists to achieve a widespread eect. It has been estimated that a single gram of crystalline toxin, evenly dispersed and inhaled, could kill more than one million people [2].
