How Does Ttx Affect The Body

Neurotransmitter affected:

TTX affects serotonin, acetylcholine, histamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine. The levels of serotonin are at their highest after four hours after TTX is administered. Whereas the levels of acetylcholine, histamine, and norepinephrine are at their highest after six hours.

Mode of action

TTX blocks the sodium channels like a cork thus inhibiting the action potential to rise. Since sodium cannot pass through the sodium channel because TTX blocked it; however, potassium channels remain untouched and they are able to flow through. TTX is much larger than a typical sodium ion, as a result, there is no way for the sodium to get around the blockage meaning there is no way for the sodium to pass through the membrane. Since the action potential cannot rise, it prevents nerve impulses from being conducted along the axon. If nerve impulses cannot be delivered, then the victim will lose control of their respiration, heart, and all body activity.

Effects on body

At first, the victim will feel a burning or tingling sensation on their lips, tongue, and in their limbs. This is then followed by sweating, headaches, weakness, lethargy, incoordination, tremors, paralysis, cyanosis, aphonia, dysphasia, and seizures. Later the victim will experience severe gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. As the poison sits in the body, the victim will experience respiratory issues and will have trouble breathing and speaking. They will experience a lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure, a lower pulse, and heart rate. The victim will most-likely become completely paralyzed but usually remains conscious and lucid for 4 to 6 hours; although, some victims will end up in a