U.S. finds new cyanide detox drug to dissolve toxicity in 3 minutes

U.Sscientists have discovered a new antidote that can quickly detoxify cyanide toxicity, which is expected to help those facing chemical toxicity, such as firefighters, chemical plant workers and victims of terrorist attacksThe study was published in the 27th issue of the journal Medical ChemistryResearchers at the University of Minnesota's Center for Drug Design and the VA Medical Center in Minneapolis have discovered the new cyanide rapid antidoteDrSteven Patterson, who led the study and deputy director of the Center for Drug Design at the University of Minnesota, said the current cyanide antidote is slow and ineffective because it requires intravenous injections and is effective an hour before people are exposed to cyanidePatterson's research is based on the findings of Heppert Changze, a retired professor at the University of MinnesotaThe researchers developed a new cyanide antidote, an oral drug that can work in less than three minutes, meeting the U.SDepartment of Defense's "3-minute solution"standardCyanide is a fast-acting poison that inhibits cell breathing, i.eit leaves animals without oxygen and unable to complete many of the basic biochemical processes needed to surviveSymptoms of acute cyanide poisoning in humans include headache, dizziness, movement disorders, weak veins, abnormal heartbeat, vomiting, convulsions, coma, and even deathIn enclosed spaces, cyanide is highly lethal and can quickly affect victimsSurvivors of cyanide poisoning often have short-term memory loss and syndromes similar to those of Parkinson'sdiseaseIn nature, dented fruits, certain grasses and food produce cyanide, but there is also the corresponding function in the human body to dissolve the small amount of cyanide in food The new antidote cleverly borrows the human body's natural detoxification method, which transforms the toxic cyanide into a non-toxic thionate when it enters the body Patterson said tests on animals showed the antidote was working well and he and his colleagues hope to start human clinical trials within the next three years