Organophosphate-induced delayed neuropathy (OPIDN), also called organophosphate-induced delayed polyneuropathy (OPIDP), is a

neuropathy Peripheral neuropathy, often shortened to neuropathy, refers to damage or disease affecting the nerves. Damage to nerves may impair sensation, movement, gland function, and/or organ function depending on which nerve fibers are affected. Neuropa ...

caused by killing of neurons in the

central nervous system The central nervous system (CNS) is the part of the nervous system consisting primarily of the brain, spinal cord and retina. The CNS is so named because the brain integrates the received information and coordinates and influences the activity o ...

, especially in the

spinal cord The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular structure made up of nervous tissue that extends from the medulla oblongata in the lower brainstem to the lumbar region of the vertebral column (backbone) of vertebrate animals. The center of the spinal c ...

, as a result of acute or chronic

organophosphate poisoning Organophosphate poisoning is poisoning due to organophosphates (OPs). Organophosphates are used as insecticides, medications, and nerve agents. Symptoms include increased saliva and tear production, diarrhea, vomiting, small pupils, sweating, m ...

. A striking example of OPIDN occurred during the 1930s

Prohibition Era Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacturing, manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption ...

when thousands of men in the American South and Midwest developed arm and leg weakness and pain after drinking a "medicinal" alcohol substitute. The drink, called " Ginger Jake," contained an adulterated

Jamaican ginger Jamaica ginger extract, known in the United States by the slang name Jake, was a late 19th-century patent medicine that provided a convenient way to obtain alcohol during the era of Prohibition in the United States, Prohibition, since it conta ...

extract containing

tri-ortho-cresyl phosphate Tricresyl phosphate (TCP), is a mixture of three isomeric organophosphate compounds most notably used as a flame retardant. Other uses include as a plasticizer in manufacturing for lacquers and varnishes and vinyl plastics and as an antiwear addit ...

(TOCP) which resulted in partially reversible neurologic damage. The damage resulted in the limping called "jake paralysis" – and also "jake leg" or "jake walk", which were terms frequently used in the blues music of the period. Europe and

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

both experienced outbreaks of TOCP poisoning from contaminated

abortifacient An abortifacient ("that which will cause a miscarriage" from Latin: '' abortus'' "miscarriage" and '' faciens'' "making") is a substance that induces abortion. This is a nonspecific term which may refer to any number of substances or medications, ...

s and

cooking oil Cooking oil (also known as edible oil) is a plant or animal liquid fat used in frying, baking, and other types of cooking. Oil allows higher cooking temperatures than water, making cooking faster and more flavorful, while likewise distributing h ...

, respectively. The disorder may contribute to the chronic multisymptom illnesses of the Gulf War veterans as well as aerotoxic syndrome (especially tricresyl phosphate poisoning) The exact cause of the syndrome is unknown, although it has been associated with inhibition of patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing protein 6 (PNPLA6, aka neuropathy target esterase). There is no specific treatment, and recovery is usually incomplete, affecting only

sensory nervous system The sensory nervous system is a part of the nervous system responsible for processing sense, sensory information. A sensory system consists of sensory neurons (including the sensory receptor cells), neural pathways, and parts of the brain invol ...

, while motor neuropathy persists.

References

External links

* {{cite journal , doi=10.1016/j.cca.2005.10.008 , pmid=16337171 , title=Current issues in organophosphate toxicology , journal=Clinica Chimica Acta , volume=366 , issue=1–2 , pages=1–13 , year=2006 , last1=Costa , first1=Lucio G Organophosphates Neurological disorders Toxic effects of substances chiefly nonmedicinal as to source

See also

References

External links