Question about BOTOX...?!?!
Question: Can anyone explain to me what botox does/ how it works at the cellular level? Links would be greatly appreciated! Thanks so much!
Answers: Can anyone explain to me what botox does/ how it works at the cellular level? Links would be greatly appreciated! Thanks so much!
yeah, but i bet those bunnies have sexy pouty lips!
The bacteria, Clostridium botulinum, produces a toxin that actually contains 7 distinct serological types. Type A is the most potent and is marketed by Allergan as Botox. Type B is marketed by Elan Pharmaceuticals as Myobloc?. Botulinum toxin types A and B have been FDA approved for various indications.
1989 - Type A approved for treatment of strabismus and blepharospasm.
2001 - Type A & B approved for treatment of cervical dystonia
2002 - Type A approved for the cosmetic treatment frown lines between the eyebrows only
How Botox Works
The medical term for the action of Botox is selective muscle denervation.Normally, to make a muscle contract, a nerve sends a signal to the muscle. The point where the nerve and the muscle meet is called the neuromuscular junction. When the signal gets to the neuromuscular junction a chemical called acetylcholine is released from the nerve side of the junction and binds to the muscle side of the junction causing more chemical reactions that make the muscle contract. Botox works by blocking the acetylcholine receptors on the muscle side of the junction. Then when the nerve sends a signal to the muscle to contract, acetylcholine is released as before, but it can't bind anywhere on the muscle. The muscle has no idea it is supposed to contract. It is essentially paralyzed, but not because it or the nerve have been damaged.
This acetylcholine blockade is non-reversible and begins within 48 hours. The clinical effects of a Botox injection become noticeable between 5-10 days. Over the next 3-5 months the muscle gradually regenerates new acetylcholine receptor sites and regains the ability to sense the nerve's signal to contract.
Botox is tested on animals. Don't use it.