Organophosphates are formed from a reaction between phosphoric acid and various alcohols. These chemical compounds are used for killing insects, to prevent damage to crops or livestock and to control disease spreading insects. Organophosphates can be extremely toxic to humans. Ingestion or absorption through skin contact can disable your muscles leading to potentially fatal consequences. A minority of organophosphates induce neuropathy, otherwise known as damage to or death of nerve cells, frequently leading to movement disorders.
Symptoms
Death of neurones in your spinal cord and lower extremities is characteristic of some forms of organophosphate poisoning, ultimately leading to an impairment or even complete loss of limb movement, particularly in the legs, according to the website Patient.co.uk.
Exposure
Exposure to a single large dose of organosphosphates would not induce symptoms for at least ten days, whereas exposure to small amounts over a longer period would take weeks to months to become apparent, according to a June 2003 article published in "Toxicology Letters."
Neuropathy-Causing Organophosphates
Many organophosphates are now banned for use as insecticides due to the poisonous effects of these chemicals on the human body. Triortho-cresyl phosphate, trichlorforn, and trichlornat are examples of organophosphates that have been implicated as causal agents of neuropathy, according to a June 2003 article published in "Toxicology Letters."
Toxic Actions
Toxic effects of organophosphate poisoning can disrupt signalling in the nervous system by directly killing nerve cells and also by destroying the fatty myelin nerve coating, which is important for effective transmission of electrical signals along the elongated section of neurons known as the axon. Different types of nerve cells are killed by organophosphate poisoning, including those which transmit signals to your muscles known as motor neurons and those which collect information from your immediate environment known as sensory nerves, according to the website Patient.co.uk.
Ginger Jake
A famous example of organophosphate-induced neuropathy came about in the 1930s, when alcohol was illegal in the U.S. Thousands of men in the American South and Midwest developed limb weaknesses and pain after drinking a "medicinal" alcohol substitute which contained a Jamaican ginger extract, subsequently found to be contaminated with the organophosphate triortho-cresyl phosphate. These men were often referred to as having "Jake Leg," a name derived from the brand name of the drink, "Ginger Jake", according to a March 2010 article published in "The Poison Review".
