Botox treatment has been gaining popularity over the past few many years, with an increasing variety of younger adults in search of the treatment for smoothening their wrinkles, correcting their frown lines, and combating the signs of aging.

Nonetheless, when selecting Botox to get the most effective looks, additionally it is essential to know the drugs used for the procedure could cause paralysis. A recent study from the University of Queensland has determined how Botox enters the brain cells and affects neurons to cause paralysis.

Botox is a toxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. The treatment was initially developed for eye conditions corresponding to strabismus and as a fast treatment to alleviate migraine and chronic pain.

Nonetheless, in recent times, Botox treatment found uses in plastic surgeries and gained popularity within the cosmetic industry. It’s estimated that 3.6 million people received cosmetic injections in 2021, and the market is anticipated to achieve $15.4 billion by 2030. In response to the newest surveys, 8% of U.S. adults have attempted non-invasive cosmetic treatments involving procedures, corresponding to Botox injections.

Although muscle paralysis was a known side effect of Botox treatment, earlier research couldn’t discover how the neurotoxin worked to chill out muscles.

In the newest study, the researchers evaluated how Clostridium botulinum damages the communication between the brain neurons, leading to paralysis.

“We used super-resolution microscopy to indicate that a receptor called Synaptotagmin 1 binds to 2 other previously known clostridial neurotoxin receptors to form a tiny complex that sits on the plasma membrane of neurons,” Frederic Meunier, a lead-author of the study, said.

“The toxin hijacks this complex and enters the synaptic vesicles, which store neurotransmitters critical to communication between neurons. Botox then interrupts the communication between nerves and muscle cells, causing paralysis,” Meunier explained.

The invention also opens the potential to discover latest therapeutic targets for effective treatments of botulism–a rare but potentially fatal bacterial infection attributable to Clostridium botulinum.

“Clostridial neurotoxins are amongst essentially the most potent protein toxins known to humans. We now have a full picture of how these toxins are internalized to intoxicate neurons at therapeutically relevant concentrations,” Dr. Merja Joensuu, one other co-researcher of the study from UQ’s Queensland Brain Institute, said.

A recent study has determined how Botox enters the brain cells and affects neurons to cause paralysis.
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Published by Medicaldaily.com