Abrin

Abrin-a
Abrin-a structure (PDB: 1ABR​). The A chain is shown in blue and the B chain in olive. A single peptide is cleaved into the two chains.
Identifiers
OrganismAbrus precatorius
Symbol?
CAS number1393-62-0
UniProtP11140
Search for
StructuresSwiss-model
DomainsInterPro
Abrin
Identifiers
ChemSpider
  • none
KEGG
RTECS number
  • AA5250000
UNII
UN number 3462
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).

Abrin is an extremely toxic toxalbumin found in the seeds of the rosary pea (or jequirity pea), Abrus precatorius. It has a median lethal dose of 0.7 micrograms per kilogram of body mass when given to mice intravenously (approximately 3.86 times more toxic than ricin, being 2.7 micrograms per kilogram).[1] The median toxic dose for humans ranges from 10 to 1000 micrograms per kilogram when ingested and is 3.3 micrograms per kilogram when inhaled.[2]

Abrin is a ribosome inhibiting protein like ricin, a toxin which can be found in the seeds of the castor oil plant,[3] and pulchellin, a toxin which can be found in the seeds of Abrus pulchellus.[4] Abrin is classed as a "select agent" under U.S. law.

  1. ^ Gill DM (1982). "Bacterial toxins: a table of lethal amounts". Microbiological Reviews. 46 (1): 86–94. doi:10.1128/MMBR.46.1.86-94.1982. PMC 373212. PMID 6806598.
  2. ^ Rudolf C Johnson, et al. (March 2009). "Quantification of L-Abrine in Human and Rat Urine: A Biomarker for the Toxin Abrin". Journal of Analytical Toxicology. 33 (2): 77–84. doi:10.1093/jat/33.2.77. PMID 19239732.
  3. ^ Dickers KJ, Bradberry SM, Rice P, Griffiths GD, Vale JA (2003). "Abrin poisoning". Toxicological Reviews. 22 (3): 137–42. doi:10.2165/00139709-200322030-00002. PMID 15181663. S2CID 20411255.
  4. ^ Sadraeian M, Guimaraes GF, Araujo AP, Worthylake DK, LeCour LJ, Pincus SH (2017). "Selective cytotoxicity of a novel immunotoxin based on pulchellin A chain for cells expressing HIV envelope". Scientific Reports. 7 (1): 7579. Bibcode:2017NatSR...7.7579S. doi:10.1038/s41598-017-08037-3. PMC 5548917. PMID 28790381.