The current uses of botulinum toxin

Botulinum toxin is an extremely powerful neurotoxin that is a product of the anaerobic bacterium Clostridium botulinum and is responsible for the condition botulism. Public awareness of the toxin has recently been raised by its development as a weapon for biological warfare and its facial cosmetic effects. However, the acute paralytic illness after some forms of food poisoning had been recognized for many years and an association with a neurotoxin was demonstrated over a century ago.