From a gold mining enterprise into the Sekisovka River in the East Kazakhstan region, the maximum permissible concentration (MPC) of cyanide was exceeded by more than 500 times, the press service of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Kazakhstan reported on Wednesday, November 2.

Cyanides include a large group of chemical compounds derived from hydrocyanic acid. All of them contain a cyano group - CN. There are inorganic cyanides (hydrocyanic acid, sodium and potassium cyanides, cyanide, cyanogen chloride, cyanogen bromide, calcium cyanide) and organic cyanides (esters of cyanoformic and cyanoacetic acids, nitriles, thiocyanates, glycoside-amygdalin, etc.).

Inorganic cyanides are widely used in the chemical, leather, textile, photography, agriculture, gold mining and electroplating industries.

Organic cyanides are used to control agricultural pests, in organic syntheses, the pharmaceutical industry, etc.

Hydrocyanic acid and its salts, cyanides, are among the most toxic substances and cause severe poisoning.

Hydrocyanic acid (HCN) is a light, volatile liquid with a characteristic odor of bitter almonds. It is a very strong poison: in an amount of 0.05 grams it already causes fatal poisoning in humans.

Sodium and potassium cyanides are colorless crystals and easily decompose in air in the presence of moisture, releasing hydrocyanic acid. Cyanogen chloride is a colorless liquid with a pungent odor. Cyanogen bromide is colorless crystals with a pungent odor. Calcium cyanamide is snow-white in its pure form, while technical grade is a grayish-black fine powder. Cyanplav - a mixture of cyanides and chlorides of calcium and sodium, dark gray powder (grains or crystals) with a faint odor of bitter almonds.

Cyanide enters the body through the digestive and respiratory organs and rarely through the skin. The poisonous effect of cyanides is based on the fact that they bind to tissue enzymes responsible for cellular respiration, suppressing their activity, and cause oxygen starvation fabrics.

Cyanide anions form complexes with ferrous ions, which leads to a blockade of oxygen transfer to tissues and causes tissue hypoxia (oxygen starvation). As a result, the functions of the brain and respiratory center are disrupted.

When inhaling hydrocyanic acid fumes, death occurs within one minute. Ingestion of sodium or potassium cyanide can also cause death in a person within minutes.

The effect of potassium and sodium cyanide on the skin can cause the formation of cracks and the development of eczema.

The clinical picture of acute cyanide poisoning depends on the dose of poison or the concentration of hydrocyanic acid vapor.

Symptoms of hydrocyanic acid poisoning

For mild poisoning: the smell of bitter almonds from the mouth, sore throat, dizziness, salivation, vomiting, fear, shock.
In case of severe poisoning: loss of consciousness, convulsions, hyperemia (overflow of blood in the vessels of the circulatory system) of the skin, paralysis of the respiratory center.

First aid

If you suspect poisoning with hydrocyanic acid, first of all it is necessary to induce vomiting in the victim, then take him to the fresh air, give activated charcoal to drink and call an ambulance medical care. When calling an ambulance, be sure to report that hydrocyanic acid poisoning has occurred.

The doctor must intravenously administer an antidote (antidote) of hydrocyanic acid - sodium thiosulfate, which weakens the effect of the poison. If vital functions are impaired, the doctor takes resuscitation measures. After providing first aid, he hospitalizes the patient for further treatment.

The material was prepared based on information from open sources

There is no return” (W. Shakespeare). When ingested, cyanide produces an inhibitory effect. Or, for mere mortals, it creates conditions under which the body's cells stop absorbing the oxygen contained in the blood. And then a kind of suffocation occurs at the cellular level. Scary? At this point, it seems, one can put a cross in every sense and condemn the substance to eternal torment in the ninth hell, where it itself sent many people. But... not everything is so simple. It turns out that potassium cyanide has acquired a lot of legends during its existence.

Mythology of cyanide

Let's debunk myths.

A little history

During times Ancient Rome There were such special people - fortune-tellers or priests. They chewed laurel leaves and then gave a news report for the upcoming reporting period. And jokes aside, they had strong hallucinations, which were given great importance in those days. And, as you already guessed, the reason for this was precisely bay leaves or common laurel, which is successfully used in cooking today.

Indeed, the leaves of this plant contain potassium cyanide, or rather hydrocyanic acid, as well as many other substances. But it was precisely thanks to poison in micro doses that the rulers of the Roman Empire received the “blessing of the gods” or their “disfavor.”

And again the question is, what to do with cooking? Should we stop using such a pleasant spice? Not at all! Let us remember that dried leaves are added to the soup, which were stored for an unknown amount of time, first in the supplier’s warehouse, and then in the store. And the priests preferred fresh product. So... bon appetit!

And a few more words

It's not that simple.

Not everything is so simple with potassium cyanide. He is both dangerous and not entirely. He can “connect you with the gods” or send you directly to them for an audience without a return ticket. In any case, there is no point in experimenting again with this extremely dangerous substance, which humanity has isolated for its own misfortune.

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• A little more about cyanide

There are millions of different animals in the world. Some of them are completely harmless for people, and some become a threat to human life.

One of the most dangerous animals are mosquitoes that carry tropical. They live a little south of the Sahara. The danger of mosquitoes lies in the fact that they move easily in space, they can land on a person unnoticed and infect him with malaria with their bite.

Poisonous animals have become another dangerous animal. They have huge amount and reach a length of about four and a half meters. Notice that there are poisonous capsules in each of their tentacles. In this regard, they can kill more than fifty people in a year.

Because of poisonous snakes More than 55,000 people die worldwide each year. However, the most dangerous to life are efa, viper and cobra. They are found mainly in the CIS countries.

Who can attack a person

Of all the poisons, potassium cyanide has the most notorious reputation. In detective stories, the use of this cyanide by criminals is a very popular way to get rid of unwanted persons. Obviously, the wide popularity of the poison is also associated with its availability at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, when the powder could easily be bought at a pharmacy.

Meanwhile, potassium cyanide is not the most dangerous and toxic substance - in terms of lethal dose it is inferior to such prosaic poisons as nicotine or botulinum toxin. So what is potassium cyanide, where is it used and how does it affect the human body? Does his fame correspond to the real state of affairs?

What is potassium cyanide

The poison belongs to the group of cyanide derivatives. The formula of potassium cyanide is KCN. The substance was first obtained by the German chemist Robert Wilhelm Bunsen in 1845, and he also developed an industrial method for its synthesis.

By appearance Potassium cyanide is a colorless crystalline powder, highly soluble in water. The reference books describe that potassium cyanide has a specific smell of bitter almonds. But this characteristic is not always correct - approximately 50% of people are able to smell this smell. It is believed that this is due to individual differences in the olfactory apparatus. Potassium cyanide- not a very stable connection. Since hydrocyanic acid is weak, the cyano group is easily displaced from the compound by salts of stronger acids. As a result, the cyano group evaporates, and the substance loses its toxic properties. Cyanides also oxidize when exposed to moist air or in solutions with glucose. The latter property allows the use of glucose as one of the antidotes for and its derivatives.

Why does a person need potassium cyanide? It is used in the mining and processing industry and in electroplating industries. Because precious metals are not able to be oxidized by oxygen directly, then solutions of potassium or sodium cyanide are used to catalyze the process. Chronic potassium cyanide poisoning can occur among people not involved in production. Thus, in the early 2000s, there were cases of toxic emissions from mining and processing enterprises in Romania and Hungary into the Danube River, as a result of which people living in the vicinity of the floodplain suffered. Workers of special laboratories who come into contact with poison as a reagent are at risk of getting a chronic disease.

In household conditions, cyanide can be found in reagents for darkrooms and in jewelry cleaning products. Small amounts of potassium cyanide are used by entomologists in insect stains. There is also art paints(gouache, watercolor), which contain cyanides - “Prussian blue”, “Prussian blue”, “milori”. There they are combined with iron and give the dye a rich azure color.

What contains potassium cyanide in nature? You won’t find it in its pure form, but a compound with a cyano group, amygdalin, is found in the seeds of apricots, plums, cherries, almonds, and peaches; elderberry leaves and shoots. When amygdalin is broken down, hydrocyanic acid is formed, which acts similarly to potassium cyanide. Fatal poisoning can be obtained from 1 g of amygdalin, which corresponds to approximately 100 g of apricot kernels.

Effect of potassium cyanide on humans

How does potassium cyanide affect the human body? The poison blocks the cellular enzyme - cytochrome oxidase, which is responsible for the absorption of oxygen by the cell. As a result, oxygen remains in the blood and circulates there bound to hemoglobin. Therefore, in case of cyanide poisoning, even venous blood has a bright scarlet color. Without access to oxygen, metabolic processes inside the cell stop and the body quickly dies. The effect is equivalent to as if the poisoned person simply suffocated due to lack of air.

Potassium cyanide is poisonous if ingested, or if the powder and solution vapors are inhaled; can also penetrate the skin, especially if it is damaged. The lethal dose of potassium cyanide for humans is 1.7 mg/kg body weight. The drug belongs to the group of potent toxic substances, its use is controlled with all possible rigor.

The effect of cyanide is weakened in combination with glucose. Laboratory workers who are forced to come into contact with this poison while working hold a piece of sugar under their cheek. This allows you to neutralize microscopic doses of toxin that accidentally enter the bloodstream. Also, the poison is absorbed more slowly on a full stomach, which allows the body to reduce its harmful effects through oxidation by glucose and some other blood compounds. Not large number Cyanide ions, about 140 mcg per liter of plasma, circulate in the blood as a natural metabolic metabolite. For example, they are part of vitamin B12 - cyanocobalamin. And the blood of smokers contains twice as much of them.

Symptoms of potassium cyanide poisoning

What are the symptoms of potassium cyanide poisoning? The effect of the poison manifests itself very quickly - when inhaled almost instantly, when ingested - after a few minutes. Cyanide is absorbed slowly through the skin and mucous membranes. Signs of potassium cyanide poisoning depend on the dose received and individual sensitivity to the poison.

In acute poisoning, disorders develop in four stages.

Prodromal stage:

• sore throat, scratching sensation;
• bitterness in the mouth, the notorious taste of “bitter almonds” is possible;
• numbness of the mucous membrane oral cavity, pharynx;
• salivation;
• nausea and vomiting;
• dizziness;
• feeling of tightness in the chest.

The second stage is dyspnoetic, during which the signs of oxygen starvation increase:

• pressure in the chest increases;
• the pulse slows down and weakens;
• general weakness increases;
• dyspnea;
• the pupils are dilated, the conjunctiva of the eyes turns red, eyeballs protrude;
• a feeling of fear arises, turning into a stunned state.

When a lethal dose is received, the third stage begins - convulsive:

The fourth stage is paralytic, leading to death from potassium cyanide:

• the victim is unconscious;
• breathing slows down greatly;
• the mucous membranes turn red, a blush appears;
• Sensitivity and reflexes are lost.

Death occurs within 20–40 minutes (if the poison gets inside) from respiratory and cardiac arrest. If the victims do not die within four hours, then, as a rule, they survive. Possible consequences - residual impairment of brain activity due to oxygen starvation.

In chronic cyanide poisoning, the symptoms are largely due to intoxication with thiocyanates (rodanides) - substances of the second class of danger into which cyanides are converted in the body under the influence of sulfide groups. Thiocyanates cause pathology thyroid gland, have a harmful effect on the liver, kidneys and provoke the development of gastritis.

First aid for poisoning

The victim needs the prompt administration of potassium cyanide antidotes, of which there are several. Before introducing a specific antidote, it is necessary to alleviate the patient’s condition - remove the poison from the stomach by lavage:

Then give a sweet warm drink.

If the victim is unconscious, then only a medical professional can help him. In case of respiratory arrest, artificial ventilation is performed.

If there is a possibility of potassium cyanide getting on clothing, it is necessary to remove it and wash the patient’s skin with water.

Treatment

Measures are taken to maintain vital functions - a breathing tube and an intravenous catheter are inserted. Potassium cyanide is a poison for which there are several antidotes. They are all used because they have different mechanisms of action. The antidote is effective even in the last stages of poisoning.

In this case, they focus on ensuring that the level of methemoglobin in the blood does not exceed 25–30%.

1. Solutions of substances that easily release sulfur neutralize cyanide in the blood. A 25% sodium thiosulfate solution is used.
2. Glucose solution 5 or 40%.

To stimulate the respiratory center, the drugs “Lobelin” or “Cititon” are administered.

To summarize, we can say the following. The toxic effect of potassium cyanide on humans is to block the mechanism of cellular respiration, resulting in death from suffocation and paralysis very quickly. Antidotes - amyl nitrite, sodium thiosulfate, glucose - can help. They are administered intravenously or inhaled. To prevent chronic poisoning in production, it is necessary to follow general safety measures: avoid direct contact with poison, use protective equipment, and regularly conduct medical examinations.

Author V.I. Petrov, T.I. Revyako

HYDROCYANIC ACID

Until now, the most important representative of cyanides is hydrocyanic acid. This light, volatile liquid with a characteristic odor of bitter almonds is a very strong poison: in an amount of 0.05 g it already causes fatal poisoning in humans. First obtained in its pure form in the 80s XVIII century Swedish pharmacist and chemist Karl Scheele developed hydrocyanic acid (it is claimed that Scheele himself became a victim of this poison during one of his experiments) and now attracts the close attention of many specialists.

Cyanide compounds were already used in ancient times, although, of course, they chemical nature was not known then. Thus, the ancient Egyptian priests knew how to make an essence from peach leaves, which they used to kill guilty people. In Paris, in the Louvre, on a roll of papyrus there is a warning saying: “Do not pronounce the name of Iao under pain of punishment with a peach,” and in the Temple of Isis an inscription was found: “Do not open - otherwise you will die from the peach.”

Now we know that the current integral part here was hydrocyanic acid, formed in the process of enzymatic transformations of certain substances of plant origin. A number of prominent chemists of the past studied the structure, methods of production and use of cyanide. Thus, in 1811, Gay-Lussac first showed that hydrocyanic acid is a hydrogen compound of a radical consisting of carbon and nitrogen, and Bunsen in mid-19th V. developed a method for the industrial production of potassium cyanide. Many years have passed since potassium cyanide and other cyanides were important as agents of deliberate poisoning and when forensic experts took special interest in these fast-acting poisons.

History knows of cases of the use of cyanide for mass destruction of people. For example, the French army used hydrocyanic acid as a poisonous substance during the First World War, in Hitler's extermination camps the Nazis used poisonous cyclone gases (cyanoformic acid esters), American troops in South Vietnam used toxic organic cyanides against civilians. It is also known that in the USA long time The death penalty is applied by poisoning convicts with hydrocyanic acid fumes in a special chamber.

Due to their high chemical activity and ability to interact with numerous compounds of various classes, cyanides are widely used in many industries, agriculture, scientific research, and this creates many opportunities for research. So, hydrocyanic acid and large number its derivatives are used in the extraction of precious metals from ores, in electroplating gilding and silvering, in the production of aromatic substances, chemical fibers, plastics, rubber, organic glass, plant growth stimulants, and herbicides. Cyanides are also used as insecticides, fertilizers and defoliants.

Hydrocyanic acid is released in a gaseous state during many industrial processes, and is also formed when cyanide comes into contact with other acids and moisture. There may also be cyanide poisoning due to eating large quantities of almond, peach, apricot, cherry, plum and other plants of the Rosaceae family or infusions from their fruits. It turned out that they all contain the glycosite amygdalin, which in the body, under the influence of the emulsin enzyme, decomposes to form hydrocyanic acid, benzaldehyde and 2 glucose molecules.

The largest amount of amygdalin is found in bitter almonds, the peeled grains of which contain about 3%. Slightly less amygdalin (up to 2%) in combination with emulsin is found in apricot seeds. Clinical observations showed that the death of the poisoned usually occurred after eating about 100 peeled apricot seeds, which corresponds to approximately 1 g of amygdalin. Like amygdalin, plant glycosides such as linamarin, found in flax, and laurocerazine, found in the leaves of the cherry laurel tree, split off hydrocyanic acid. There are a lot of cyanide substances in young bamboos and their shoots (up to 0.15% of wet weight). In the animal world, hydrocyanic acid is found in the secretion of the skin glands of millipedes.

Cyanide toxicity to various types animals are different. Thus, high resistance to hydrocyanic acid has been observed in cold-blooded animals, while many warm-blooded animals are very sensitive to it. As for man, he is apparently more resistant to the action of hydrocyanic acid than some higher animals. This is confirmed, for example, by an experiment carried out at great risk to himself by the famous English physiologist Barcroft, who in a special chamber together with a dog was exposed to hydrocyanic acid at a concentration of 18:6000. The experiment continued until the dog became comatose and began to have convulsions. The experimenter did not notice any signs of poisoning at this time. Only after 10 - 15 minutes. After removing the dying dog from the cell, he experienced impaired attention and nausea.

There is a lot of data indicating the formation of cyanide in the human body under physiological conditions. Cyanides of endogenous origin are found in biological fluids, exhaled air, and urine. It is believed that their normal level in blood plasma can reach 140 mcg/l.

Cyanides can penetrate into internal environments the body with poisoned food and water, as well as through damaged skin. Inhalation exposure to volatile cyanides, primarily hydrocyanic acid and cyanogen chloride, is very dangerous. Back in the 60s XIX century noticed that venous blood flowing from the tissues and organs of animals poisoned by cyanide takes on a scarlet, arterial color. It was later shown that it contains approximately the same amount of oxygen as arterial blood. Consequently, under the influence of cyanide, the body loses the ability to absorb oxygen.

This inhibits the normal process of tissue respiration. Thus, by blocking one of the iron-containing respiratory enzymes, cyanides cause a paradoxical phenomenon: there is excess oxygen in cells and tissues, but they cannot absorb it, since it is chemically inactive. As a result, a pathological condition known as tissue, or histotoxic, hypoxia quickly forms in the body, which is manifested by suffocation, convulsions, and paralysis. When non-lethal doses of poison enter the body, the matter is limited to a metallic taste in the mouth, redness of the skin and mucous membranes, dilated pupils, vomiting, shortness of breath and headache.

On the other hand, if an animal organism is adapted to low level oxygen metabolism, then its sensitivity to cyanides sharply decreases. At the beginning of this century, the outstanding Russian pharmacologist N.P. Kravkov established an interesting fact: during hibernation Hedgehogs tolerate doses of potassium cyanide that are many times greater than lethal doses. N.P. Kravkov explained the resistance of hedgehogs to cyanide by the fact that during hibernation at low body temperatures, oxygen consumption is significantly reduced and animals better tolerate inhibition of its uptake by cells.

The ability of CN ions to reversibly inhibit tissue respiration and thereby reduce the level of metabolic processes unexpectedly turned out to be very valuable for the prevention and treatment of radiation injuries. This is due to the fact that in the mechanism of damaging action ionizing radiation The leading role on cellular structures is played by the products of water radiolysis, which oxidize many macromolecules, including enzymes of tissue respiration. Cyanides, reversibly blocking these enzymes, protect them from the action of these biologically active substances formed under the influence of radiation. In other words, the cyanide-enzyme complex becomes relatively resistant to irradiation. After radiation exposure, it becomes dissonant due to a decrease in the concentration of CN ions in the biophase due to their neutralization in the blood and release from the body. Amygdalin is the most widely used cyanide radioprotective agent.

Many historically famous figures were poisoned or committed suicide with cyanide.

Hermann Goering (1893 - 1946) - Nazi war criminal, commander-in-chief of the air force during the fascist dictatorship in Germany, Reichsmarshal. The International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg sentenced him to death by hanging.

Execution Nazi criminals was scheduled for October 16. On the evening of October 15, Colonel Andrews, who was in charge of guarding the prison where the convicts were kept, ran into the journalists’ room and said in confusion that Goering had died. Having calmed down somewhat, Andrews said that the guard soldier who was on duty at the door of Goering’s cell suddenly heard a strange wheezing. He immediately called the duty officer and the doctor. When they entered the cell, Goering was in his death throes. The doctor found small pieces of glass in his mouth and declared death from potassium cyanide poisoning.

After some time, the Austrian journalist Bleibtrey declared publicly that it was he who helped Goering die. Allegedly, before the start of the hearing, he sneaked into the hall and, using chewing gum, attached an ampoule of poison to the dock. The sensation brought Bleibtrego a lot of money, although it was false from beginning to end - at that time the meeting room was better guarded than any other place in Europe. And a few years later, Obergruppenführer Bach-Zelewski, released from prison, said the same thing as the Austrian journalist. But he attributed the transfer of poison to Goering to himself. Perhaps they are both lying. M. Yu. Raginsky believes that the poison was transferred to Goering through an American security officer for a substantial bribe. And it was conveyed by Goering’s wife, who came to her husband a few days before the appointed date for the execution of the sentence.

HIMMLER Heinrich (1900 - 1945) - Nazi war criminal, chief of the Gestapo, Minister of the Interior and commander of the reserve army in Germany.

On May 20, 1945, Himmler decided to flee. On May 23, he was detained by the British and placed in camp 031 near the city of Luneburg.

The British found an ampoule of potassium cyanide in Himmler's clothes. They didn't stop there. A doctor was called and examined the arrested man for a second time. Himmler opened his mouth, and the doctor saw something black between his teeth. He pulled Himmler towards the light, but then the former Reichsführer SS snapped his teeth and chewed on the hidden capsule. A few seconds later, Himmler breathed his last.

HITLER Adolf (pseudonym, real name Schicklgruber) (1889 - 1945) - leader of the National Socialist Party, head of the German state in 1933 - 1945.

His death is told in two main versions.

According to the first version, based on the testimony of Hitler's personal valet Linge, the Fuhrer and Eva Braun shot themselves at 15.30. When Linge and Bormann entered the room, Hitler was allegedly sitting on a sofa in the corner, a revolver lay on the table in front of him, and blood was flowing from his right temple. The dead Eva Braun, who was in another corner, dropped her revolver to the floor.

Another version (accepted by almost all historians) says: Hitler and Eva Braun were poisoned with potassium cyanide. Before his death, Hitler also poisoned his two beloved shepherd dogs.

RASPUTIN (New) Grigory Efimovich (1864/186 5 - 1916) - favorite of Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra Feodorovna.

In 1916, another conspiracy was formed against Rasputin. Its main participants were Prince Felix Yusupov, Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich, famous politician Vladimir Purishkevich and military doctor S. S. Lazavert. The conspirators lured Rasputin to Yusupov's palace in St. Petersburg, agreeing to kill him there and throw his body into the river, under the ice. For the murder, cakes filled with poison and bottles of potassium cyanide were prepared, which were going to be mixed into the wine.

Upon Rasputin's arrival at the palace, he was received by the owner, and Purishkevich, Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich and Doctor Lazavert were waiting upstairs in another room.

Purishkevich, describing in his journal the murder of the tsar’s favorite as a feat committed by the conspirators to save Russia, nevertheless pays tribute to Rasputin’s courage:

“Another good half hour had passed, which was so painfully wasting time for us, when finally we clearly heard the popping of two corks one after another, the clink of glasses, after which the interlocutors who had been talking downstairs suddenly fell silent.

We froze in our positions, going down a few more steps down the stairs. But... another quarter of an hour passed, and the peaceful conversation and even sometimes laughter from below did not stop.

“I don’t understand anything,” I whispered to him, throwing up my hands and turning to the Grand Duke. “Is he bewitched or something, that even potassium cyanide has no effect on him!”

We went up the stairs and the whole group again went into the office, where two or three minutes later Yusupov quietly entered again, upset and pale.

“No,” he says, “it’s impossible! Imagine, he drank two glasses of poison, ate several pink cakes, and, as you see, nothing; absolutely nothing, and at least fifteen minutes passed after that! I can’t imagine , what should we do, especially since he was already worried why the countess had not come out to him for so long, and I had difficulty explaining to him that it was difficult for her to disappear unnoticed, because there were few guests up there... He was now sitting on the sofa gloomy. , and, as I see, the effect of the poison affects him only in that he has incessant belching and some drooling..."

Five minutes later, Yusupov appeared in the office for the third time.

“Gentlemen,” he told us quickly, “the situation is still the same: the poison either has no effect on him, or is of no use to hell; time is running out, we can’t wait any longer.”

"But what can we do?" - Dmitry Pavlovich noted.

“If you can’t use poison,” I answered him, “you need to go for broke, openly, we all go down together, or leave it to me alone, I’ll take him out either from my “co-vazh”, or I’ll crush his skull with brass knuckles. What what do you have to say about this?"

“Yes,” Yusupov noted, “if you pose the question this way, then, of course, you will have to settle on one of these methods.”

In the United States, a type of execution is used that evokes a clear analogy with the “gas chambers” of the Nazis.

The execution technology is as follows: “The convict is tied to a chair in a sealed chamber. A stethoscope is attached to the chest, connected to headphones in the adjacent witness room and used by a doctor to monitor the progress of the execution. Cyanide gas is supplied to the chamber, poisoning the convict when inhaled. Death occurs as a result suffocation caused by cyanide gas suppressing the respiratory enzymes that ensure the blood delivers oxygen to the body's cells.

Although unconsciousness occurs quickly, the entire procedure may take longer if the convicted person tries to delay the onset of death by holding or slowing his breathing. As with other methods of execution, whether the prisoner is unconscious or not, vital organs may continue to function for an extended period of time."

In Mississippi, on September 2, 1983, one Jimmy Lee Gray was executed by gassing. During the execution, his body twitched convulsively for 8 minutes straight; he sighed 11 times open mouth, without ceasing to bang his head against the bar behind the back of the chair. According to witnesses, Lee Gray did not look dead even at the end of the execution procedure, when the prison administration asked them to leave the witness room, separated from the execution room by thick glass.

Potassium cyanide is a chemical compound that has found application in medicine and is used in various industries, chemical formula KCN. Over the centuries, the substance has become a means to eliminate ill-wishers. Modern diagnostic methods completely exclude this possibility of poisoning due to the rapid detection of poison in human tissues and organs. An effective antidote has also been synthesized to provide urgent assistance in case of accidental intoxication. It will not be possible to buy the drug in a pharmacy - pharmacists and pharmacists have long stopped using it in tinctures and ointments and purchasing it in finished form.

Physico-chemical properties

Many people learned what potassium cyanide is only after reading action-packed detective stories or watching historical TV series. For scientists, this is a compound obtained during a chemical reaction between hydrocyanic acid and easily soluble potassium salts. After diluting cyanide in water, a clear, odorless solution is formed.

The widespread belief that hydrocyanic acid smells like almonds is just a myth. Error of judgment is based on the presence of poison in the bones fruit trees. If the poison is extracted in this way, then a huge amount of plant material will be required to be able to smell the potassium cyanide.

Externally, potassium cyanide resembles ordinary granulated sugar and looks like a fine crystalline powder. As the moisture content in the surrounding space increases, the substance loses its stability and decomposes into neutral ingredients. But toxic fumes can accumulate in the air, which will cause human poisoning. Hydrocyanic acid is a weak compound, so it is easily replaced in dilution with salts formed by stronger and more stable acids.

Potassium cyanide is an inorganic compound of hydrocyanic acid with a simple chemical composition. It quickly decomposes in liquids into cations and anions, and no conditions are required to enter into reactions. When the poison is diluted in glucose solutions, its instant oxidation occurs. Therefore, when carrying out detoxification therapy, glucose can be used as an antidote that neutralizes the effect of the poison.

Currently, poisoning from a toxic compound occurs extremely rarely. Usually the causes of intoxication are:

• improper storage of the substance at home;
• occurrence of emergency situations in industrial production. Despite the presence of modern treatment facilities, toxic fumes quickly spread indoors and penetrate the human body.

The use of potassium cyanide at certain stages of technological processes as an ingredient or catalyst does not exclude the possibility of poisoning by vapors or gases. The poison enters the respiratory tract and then into the bloodstream. After a short time, a sufficient concentration accumulates in it chemical substance for death to occur.

Intoxication can develop after the poison gets on the skin and mucous membranes. In the presence of microcracks, open wounds or scratches, the poison enters the bloodstream, and at the site of its penetration it develops inflammatory process: redness and rashes appear. Potassium cyanide is able to bind to red blood cells, reducing their functional activity in delivering molecular oxygen to tissues.

Toxic effect on the human body

Intoxication with KCN in significant concentrations results in the death of a person as a result of respiratory arrest. Happening chemical reaction between the compound and cytochrome oxidase, one of the cellular enzymes. Ferric iron turns out to be bound, which makes electron transfer impossible. Violation of their transportation leads to the cessation of adenosine triphosphate synthesis. This organic matter is a universal energy accumulator in biological systems.

A paradoxical situation arises - a deficiency of molecular oxygen develops in organs and tissues, and its excess concentration is found in the bloodstream, but it is very tightly bound to red blood cells. Therefore, when autopsying people who died from this poison, the cause of death can be immediately determined: the color of the blood in all veins becomes bright red as a result of an increase in hemoglobin content.

Neutralization of red blood cells leads to oxygen starvation of tissues, decreased functional activity all life systems. The metabolism of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates slows down and they begin to accumulate in the body. The lack of molecular oxygen has a particularly negative effect on brain cells – neurons. The process of transmitting impulses to the central and autonomic nervous system is disrupted. The lack of innervation provokes the following effect of KCN on humans:

• breathing problems;
• disorder of the cardiovascular system;
• impairment of blood filtration and urine excretion from the body.

The poison is carried by the bloodstream to the liver cells, damaging them, which leads to distortion of metabolic processes.

The lethal dose for humans of the toxic compound is 1.6 mg/kg. But it may vary depending on:

• health conditions;
• gender;
• age of the victim;
• routes of penetration of a toxic compound into the body.

The toxic properties of this salt of hydrocyanic acid made it possible to classify it as a potent poison. Potassium cyanide is subject to quantitative accounting in industrial production for the prevention of severe intoxications.

Poisoning prevention measures include strict monitoring of compliance with safety precautions when working with highly toxic substances. But the ability of the poison to quickly undergo hydrolysis and evaporate into the surrounding space sometimes leads to the penetration of a small amount of the chemical compound into the body. Toxicologists advise employees to always carry compressed sugar with them. Its use slows down the absorption of potassium cyanide into the bloodstream.

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Vladimir
61 years old

Signs of poisoning will appear faster if there is no food in the person’s stomach. Carbohydrates, fats and proteins can partially bind a toxic compound and prevent its absorption by the gastric mucosa.

A small amount of potassium cyanide can always be found in cells and tissues. The chemical compound takes part in the metabolism of biologically active substances, water- and fat-soluble vitamins, and enzymes. The smoker's body contains a lot of hydrocyanic acid salts, which penetrate into the blood from tobacco.

Beneficial properties of the chemical compound

Potassium cyanide is not stable. The cyano group is quickly replaced by salts formed by stronger acids, as a result of which the compound loses its toxic properties. This quality is widely used at certain stages of technological processes in various industries.

What is potassium cyanide - a compound used as an ingredient, as well as a catalyst that accelerates the rate of chemical reactions. At mining and processing plants and in galvanic production, it is used to oxidize noble metals (gold, platinum). The toxic substance is included in reagents for developing photographic film and removing plaque from the surface of jewelry. Entomologists use KCN to kill butterflies and dragonflies. People who are interested in painting encounter hydrocyanic acid salts when diluting paints for painting:

• "milori";
• "Prussian blue";
• "Prussian blue"

These types of gouache and watercolor paint the canvas a bright blue. The term “hydrocyanic” characterizes the ability of the acid to give objects blue and intense blue colors in the presence of iron cations.

Acute and chronic poison intoxication can be diagnosed in people not involved in production precious metals. About ten years ago, at mining and processing plants in countries Eastern Europe Toxic waste was released into the Danube. The local population used the water for domestic and household needs; people ate fish caught in the reservoir. After a few months, the number of patients with symptoms of chronic intoxication increased significantly.

Potassium cyanide does not occur in nature in concentrated form. But the seeds of fruit trees of the Rosaceae family contain a small amount of amygdalin, a substance that contains a cyano group. Most of the poison is found in the kernels:

• apricots;
• peaches;
• almonds;
• cherries;
• drain

Young elderberry leaves and shoots contain a lot of potassium cyanide, which can cause poisoning in pets. Amygdalin in the human body is hydrolyzed to hydrocyanic acid, which has similar properties to its salts. Death from KCN will occur after consuming 90-110 g of apricot kernels. The fresh product is the most toxic, since during heat treatment or drying, amygdalin loses its toxic properties.

Potassium cyanide is a component of some insecticides. In agriculture, it is used to kill rodents that enter grain storage facilities. There is a high probability of poisoning if safety rules when working with poisons are not followed, as well as if they are improperly stored in places where containers with powder are easily accessible.

Intoxication Clinic

To conduct adequate detoxification therapy, doctors need to find out what concentration of poison is circulating in the victim’s body. Characteristic signs drug poisoning occurs when any amount of poison enters the bloodstream, but their severity will vary. In addition to the dose of the toxic compound, the symptoms are directly dependent on the person’s age and history of diseases. Treatment tactics for hydrocyanic acid salt poisoning differ at certain stages of the pathological process.

Mild degree of poisoning

No treatment is required at this stage of intoxication. A small amount of poison entered the victim’s body, which was not capable of affecting health. The person should be taken out of the room into fresh air and all symptoms of poisoning will quickly disappear. These include:

• dry throat, desire to cough;
• metallic taste in the mouth, feeling of numbness in the mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract;
• disorders of the digestive tract: nausea, sour belching, urge to defecate;
• feeling of lack of air, slight dizziness;
• excessive secretion of saliva;
• rapid heartbeat, arterial hypertension.

The same symptoms can occur with chronic poisoning. The lack of treatment is explained by the fact that a person, as a rule, does not attach importance to the negative signs of intoxication, attributing them to fatigue or temporary malaise.

Average degree of poisoning

As the concentration of KCN in the bloodstream increases, signs of malfunction develop central system . The situation is complicated by the fact that the victim often cannot understand the seriousness of what is happening due to the emergence of emotional instability. The following symptoms are typical for this stage of poisoning:

• increased anxiety or restlessness, sharply replaced by lethargy, apathy, drowsiness;
• lack of coordination in space, unsteadiness of gait, dizziness;
• feverish state, cold sweat, chills;
• breathing problems, shortness of breath;
• flushing of blood to the face and upper body;
• dryness of all mucous membranes;
• trembling of arms and legs.

A characteristic feature of the symptoms at this stage of intoxication is severe protrusion of the eyes. Together with redness of the mucous membranes, the symptom is one of the main diagnostic signs of poisoning with this poison.

Emotional instability is expressed in the occurrence of severe fear in a person. He wants to run somewhere, take some action, most often absolutely meaningless. In this state, the victim can harm himself and the people around him.

Severe poisoning

At this stage of intoxication, a person needs urgent hospitalization and detoxification therapy, including the use of an antidote. The severity of symptoms increases, provoking a decrease in the functional activity of all vital systems. What signs of intoxication occur at this stage:

• tremor of the upper and lower extremities;
• loss of consciousness;
• decreased tactile, muscle, tendon reflexes;
• disruption of the gastrointestinal tract: vomiting, diarrhea, bloating, feeling of fullness in the epigastric region;
• thready pulse, arterial hypotension;
• temperature rise.

This degree of poisoning with this drug is characterized by urinary disturbances.. Blood filtration by the kidneys is disrupted - toxic compounds and metabolic products of substances remain in the body. When emptying bladder a small amount of cloudy urine is released. The victim may involuntarily have a bowel movement due to a decrease in the tone of his smooth muscle muscles.

Paralytic stage of intoxication

After a lethal dose of poison has entered the body, there is little time left to neutralize the effect of the poison and administer an antidote to the victim. This stage of poisoning often ends in the death of a person if detoxification therapy and resuscitation measures are not carried out within 10-20 minutes. At this stage, the victim experiences the following symptoms:

• shallow breathing;
• convulsions;
• lack of pupil reaction to light;
• lack of urination;
• low blood pressure.

Poisoning with hydrocyanic acid salts is characterized by the appearance of a bright blush and redness of the mucous membranes. Oxygen starvation of brain cells develops. He is not able to fully regulate vital systems. The result is pulmonary edema and cardiac arrest. Death occurs most often when KCN penetrates the stomach and when toxic fumes are inhaled.

First aid for poisoning

The toxic effect of potassium cyanide on the human body manifests itself rapidly, therefore, you should immediately call an ambulance and tell the doctor the cause of intoxication.

As a rule, in all industrial production that use hydrocyanic acid compounds, there are ampoules with antidote in the first aid kit. The antidote is administered parenterally in accordance with the attached instructions.

While waiting for a doctor, it is necessary to provide first aid to the victim:

• put the person to bed, talk to him so that he is conscious;
• in case of cardiac arrest, perform indirect cardiac massage and artificial respiration;
• turn the victim on his side, as he may choke on vomit;
• rinse the stomach with a pink solution of potassium permanganate until clear liquid leaves;
• give any adsorbent or enterosorbent;
• give the person strong and very sweet tea to bind the poison.

The victim will be urgently hospitalized for detoxification treatment with solutions of glucose and mineral salts. Potassium cyanide poisoning will require a long rehabilitation period. If a large amount of a toxic compound enters the body, there may be dangerous consequences: urinary disturbances, liver cell damage, exacerbation of chronic diseases.