Botulinum toxin is a kind of bacteria that grows in an anoxic environment. It has strong viability in canned food and sealed pickled food, and is one of the most toxic bacteria. Botulinum is a fatal bacterium that secretes botulinum toxin during reproduction. This toxin is the most virulent known toxin, which can inhibit the release of acetylcholine from cholinergic nerve endings, leading to muscle relaxation paralysis. The army often uses this toxin for biological and chemical weapons. After people ingest and absorb this toxin, the nervous system will be damaged, and symptoms such as blepharoptosis, diplopia, strabismus, dysphagia, dizziness, dyspnea and muscle weakness will appear. In severe cases, people may die of respiratory paralysis.
Scientists and cosmetologists have taken a fancy to the effect that Botox can temporarily paralyze muscles. The medical profession used the toxin to treat facial spasm and other muscle movement disorders, and used it to paralyze muscle nerves, so as to stop muscle spasm. But in the course of treatment, doctors found that it has an unusual function in removing wrinkles, and its effect is far more than any other kind of cosmetics or plastic surgery. Therefore, plastic surgery using botulinum toxin to eliminate wrinkles emerged at the historic moment, and became popular throughout the United States in a very short time because of its remarkable effect.
Botulinum toxin A is extremely toxic. It can destroy a protein called SNAP-25, thus cutting off the communication between nerve cells and paralyzing muscles. Botulinum toxin A has been used to treat strabismus and muscle spasm. Later, plastic surgeons began to paralyze facial muscles with this toxin to achieve wrinkle removal effect.