What part of the body do nerve agents affect?

What part of the body do nerve agents affect?

central nervous system
The chemicals work by disrupting the central nervous system. The body uses a molecule called acetylcholine to send messages between cells—when an acetylcholine molecule arrives, it causes an electrical impulse to be sent.

How do nerve agents affect the nervous system?

Nerve agents attack the nervous system. All such agents function the same way resulting in cholinergic crisis: they inhibit the enzyme acetylcholinesterase, which is responsible for the breakdown of acetylcholine (ACh) in the synapses between nerves that control whether muscle tissues are to relax or contract.

Do nerve agents affect cardiac muscle?

Death can occur through respiratory arrest or cardiac arrhythmia. Severe poisoning by nerve agents may cause long-term physiological, psychological, and neurological effects such as cerebral impairment and cardiac malfunctioning as well as posttraumatic stress disorder and differences in intellectual and motor skills.

What do nerve agents inhibit?

Nerve agents inhibit cholinesterase enzymes in plasma, erythrocytes and at cholinergic nerve endings in tissues. Once tissue cholinesterase is inhibited by the nerve agent, the enzyme cannot hydrolyze the neurotransmitter acetylcholine.

How do blood agents affect the body?

Effects. At sufficient concentrations, blood agents can quickly saturate the blood and cause death in a matter of minutes or seconds. They cause powerful gasping for breath, violent convulsions and a painful death that can take several minutes. The immediate cause of death is usually respiratory failure.

What gases affect the nervous system?

High COHb concentrations are poisonous. Central nervous system (CNS) effects in individuals suffering acute CO poisoning cover a wide range, depending on severity of exposure: headache, dizziness, weakness, nausea, vomiting, disorientation, confusion, collapse, and coma.

What are the effects of nerve gas?

One of the first symptoms of nerve agent exposure is miosis – excessive constriction of the pupil of the eye. Other major symptoms include convulsions, loss of consciousness, excessive fluid secretion of the lungs, high blood pressure, raised heart rate (and then later, lowered heart rate), nausea and vomiting.

Is the nervous system?

The nervous system is made up of the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system: The brain and the spinal cord are the central nervous system. The nerves that go through the whole body make up the peripheral nervous system.

What is an example of a nerve agent?

What are nerve agents? Nerve agents are chemicals that interfere with the nervous system. Sarin, soman, tabun and VX are examples of nerve agents that all have similar effects. For example, a religious cult in Japan used sarin in a 1995 Tokyo subway attack that killed 12 and injured as many as 5,000 people.

Is Soman a nerve agent?

Soman is a human-made chemical warfare agent classified as a nerve agent. Nerve agents are the most toxic and rapidly acting of the known chemical warfare agents.

What is the nervous system responsible for in the body?

The nervous system helps all the parts of the body to communicate with each other. It also reacts to changes both outside and inside the body. The nervous system uses both electrical and chemical means to send and receive messages.

How does the nervous system control the body?

Your nervous system uses specialized cells called neurons to send signals, or messages, all over your body. These electrical signals travel between your brain, skin, organs, glands and muscles. The messages help you move your limbs and feel sensations, such as pain.

What are the symptoms of a nerve agent?

pinpoint pupils of the eye

  • excessive production of mucous,tears,saliva and sweat
  • headache
  • stomach pain,nausea and vomiting
  • chest tightness and shortness of breath
  • loss of bladder and bowel control
  • muscle twitching
  • seizures
  • coma
  • death
  • What are the types of nerve agents?

    Nerve agents are chemicals that affect the nervous system. The health effects are similar to those produced by some pesticides. The main nerve agents are the chemicals sarin (GB), soman (GD), tabun (GA) and VX. These agents are man-made and have been manufactured for use in chemical warfare.

    What is treatment for nerve agent?

    Patients exposed to nerve agents are normally given the drug atropine, which reduces muscle spasms and the production of saliva. It needs to be given as soon after exposure as possible – ideally within minutes.

    What are symptoms of nerve agent exposure?

    Regardless of the route of exposure, nerve agents can cause the following characteristic effects: pinpoint pupils of the eye. excessive production of mucous, tears, saliva and sweat. headache. stomach pain, nausea and vomiting. chest tightness and shortness of breath.