What Ricin Is – Biological warfare weapons (By: Gabriel Gache, Science News Editor), Sodftpedia, July 22, 2008. You might have heard on the television more than once about the assassination of the Bulgarian dissident Gerogi Markov with the help of a device hidden inside an umbrella, which fired a small pellet containing ricin into his leg. But what is ricin and why is it so deadly? It is a potent protein toxin extracted from the castor bean (Ricinus communis), which in quantities equal or higher than 500 micrograms becomes deadly to the human body.[ See ] Image of the beans of the plant (Ricinus communis) from which ricin is extracted. See also our own images from Rosario. See a review sent us by Javier Waksman in Read More.

Ricin Poisoning: A Comprehensive Review. Jennifer Audi,Martin Belson, Manish Patel,et al. JAMA. 2005;294:2342-2351. Health care workers and public health officials should consider ricin poisoning in patients with gastrointestinal or respiratory tract illness in the setting a credible threat. Poison control centers and public health authorities should be notified of any known illness associated with ricin exposure.Abstract. Full text. PDF