Botox

For the final episode of the season, we take a deep dive into the science of Botox! Or, more accurately, botulinum toxin: one of the most dangerous biological substances known to humankind. We mostly associate Botox with its cosmetic use, but there is so much more to it! This toxin was first discovered thanks to the illness it causes when accidentally eaten. From there, its powers were harnessed by the medical and cosmetic industries… but HOW does it work!? This episode, Kate goes into the history, the neuroscience, and the medical uses of botulinum toxin – resulting in a fun ride of science, story time, and self-reflection. We also tackle a listener question about “the sultana curse” – why do our fingers and toes go wrinkly after a bath? As always, you can find us @curiosityrat on twitter, instagram, and facebook, and send your listener questions in to curiosityrat@gmail.com We also now have a Patreon! If you love our content and want to support us you can jump on to https://www.patreon.com/curiosityrat and become a patron. There is absolutely ZERO pressure but if you have as little as $1/month you can chuck it our way to help us out and show you appreciate all the time and effort that goes into making this show. Botox References: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1392572/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20418969/ https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1111/jnc.15181 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27363760/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16901418/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1312202/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17458494/ https://headacheaustralia.org.au/botox-for-migraine/ https://accesspediatrics.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?bookid=2216§ionid=170340147 https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2017/125274s109lbl.pdf https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/inside-aesthetics/id1450935718?i=1000520515573 Listener Q References: https://www.nature.com/articles/nature.2013.12175 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15095056/ https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsbl.2012.0999 https://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/328223