Question

1.     One evening during a recent trip to Indonesia, Dr. Marshall Westwood from the Montana Technical Institute sat down to a meal of pufferfish and rice. Within an hour of returning to his hotel room, Dr. Westwood felt numbness in his lips and tongue, which quickly spread to his face and neck. Before he could call the front desk, he began to feel pains in his stomach and throat, which produced feelings of nausea and eventually severe vomiting.

Fearing that he had eaten some “bad fish” for dinner, Dr. Westwood called a local hospital to describe his condition. The numbness in his lips and face made it almost impossible for him to communicate, but the hospital staff managed to at least understand the address he gave them and they sent an ambulance in response. As Dr. Westwood was rushed to the hospital, his breathing became increasingly difficult.

A.      Explain why Dr. Westwood experienced numbness after eating the pufferfish meal.

Answer 1

Ans:- Pufferfish contain tetrodotoxin that is deadly for humans, upto 1200 times more poisonous than cynaide. There is enough toxin in one Pufferfish to kill 30 adult humans , and there is no known antidote.

After the toxin has been consumed there is less than 60 minutes to get respiratory treatment which is only hope for surviving the effects of this powerful poison.

Tetrodotoxin interferes with the transmission of signals from nerves to muscles by blocking sodium channels. This results in rapid weakening and paralysis of muscles , including those of the respiratory tract, which can lead to respiratory arrest and death.

Symptoms of poisoning of Pufferfish are :- numbness and tingling around the mouth, salivation, nausea and vomiting.

Symptoms may progress to paralysis, loss of consciousness, and respiratory failure, and can lead to death.

So that's why Dr. Westwood experienced numbness and the symptoms due to the poisoning of Pufferfish.