General information:

Ricin is a toxin made from the mash that is leftover after processing Castor beans for oil. Castor bean processing is a worldwide activity: therefore, the raw materials for making ricin are easily available. Additionally, ricin is easy to produce and is stable. Ricin is toxic if inhaled or ingested. In biological warfare (BW) it is expected that ricin would be released as a toxic cloud. It could also be injected into specific persons as a terrorist or sabotage weapon.

The toxic effects of ricin occur because it kills the cells of the body that it contacts when it is taken into the body.

Upon inhaling an adequate amount of ricin, death of persons affected would be expected in 36-48 hours because of difficulty breathing and circulatory system effects. Ingested Ricin is expected to cause internal bleeding, death of vital organs and death of the individual. Injected Ricin causes death by major organ failure.

Disinfection of contaminated articles may be accomplished using a 0.05% hypochlorite solution (1 tbps. bleach per gallon of water).

The military chemical protective mask is effective against inhalation of all Biological Warfare Agents.

Symptoms:

Human experience with ricin is scanty. The prediction of symptoms to be expected is based on animal studies and accidental human exposures which were not fatal. Symptoms would probably vary depending on whether ricin was inhaled, ingested or injected. About three hours after inhaling ricin, the symptoms expected are cough, tightness of the chest difficulty breathing nausea and muscle aches. This would progress to a severe inflammation of the lungs and airways, increased difficulty breathing, cyanosis (blue skin) and death in 36-48 hours from failure of the breathing and circulatory systems.

Ingestion of ricin would be expected to cause nausea and vomiting, internal bleeding of the stomach and intestines, failure of the liver, spleen and kidneys and death of the individual by collapse of the circulatory vessels. No specific affects on the lungs and airways would be expected.

If injected, ricin causes marked death of muscles and lymph nodes near the site of injection and probable failure of major organs and death of the individual.

Medical Countermeasures:

There is currently no vaccine available to be given before exposure to ricin although vaccines are under development by the U.S. Army. There is no ricin antitoxin to be given after exposure; therefore, the only treatment available involves management of the effects based on the method of exposure to the toxin. If ricin is inhaled, oxygen may be given as well as drugs to reduce inflammation and support the function of the heart and circulatory system. Persons requiring these,treatments would be gravely ill.

Ingestion of ricin would treated by emptying the stomach and intestines of their contents and replacing lost fluid. It is not known whether these measures would be life saving.

There is no specific treatment for injected ricin other than making the person comfortable and using any measures normally used to treat organ failure. Recovery would not be expected if an adequate dose of ricin were injected.

Protective measures:

The military chemical protective mask is effective against inhaled ricin. Future protection efforts are aimed at developing a vaccine against inhaled ricin.

As a toxin, ricin acts directly on the individual exposed to it and is not reproduced within the individual: it cannot be passed from person to person. Quarantine of affected individuals would be of no value.