Plant ricin comes from native to Africa, but grown in Texas

07:30 PM CST on Tuesday, February 3, 2004

By Jason Whitely / 11 News

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The U.S. senate building remains shut down after the poison ricin was found. Tests confirmed that the power found is indeed an active form of the deadly poison.

Dozens of employees were reportedly decontaminated after the discovery. But officials say there is no evidence that anyone was exposed enough to make them sick. The ricin was found in an envelope mailed to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist.

"Somebody in all likelihood manufactured with intent to harm," said Sen. Frist. "This is a criminal investigation that will be underway."

Authorities have begun the process of removing and testing all mail delivered to the three senate buildings, and hazardous material workers are testing the air.

Right now the Department of Homeland Security is monitoring the investigation, and is calling this a criminal act, not the work of terrorists.

Ricin is an extremely toxic poison derived from the same plant used to make castor oil. Symptoms show up within a few hours of exposure and vary depending on whether the poison was inhaled, swallowed or injected. Ricin works by stopping the body's cells from making proteins, killing cells and shutting down organs. A large enough dose can lead to death within two to three days.

There is no antidote or cure for ricin. Treatment consists of supportive care, treating the symptoms and hoping for the best.

Scientists in the Houston area are very familiar with ricin.

The plant ricin comes from is native to Africa, but is grown in Texas. The substance is made from the seeds or beans of the plant. They are not poisonous to hold, but experts warn against breaking the seeds open. The beans grow on the castor bean plant that is found in many parts of our area.

The University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston no longer studies ricin in its laboratory, but has taken calls from the poison control center and folks who are curious about the substance after hearing about it on the news.

"The use of it in a warfare type of way is something really rare, something we really haven't run into," says John Thompson with the UTMB Poison Control Center. "Now we're really having some issues with what they've found in the senate office building. But around here we really don't have that much. We occasionally run into a child, a call into the poison center about them eating the beans."

Ricin is most lethal if it is injected into a person, even more deadly than cyanide according to experts at UTMB. But they say that in a powder form like that found in the senate building in Washington, D.C., anthrax is likely more toxic. Ricin is not contagious, and cannot be spread from person to person through casual contact.