OnabotulinumtoxinA
BotoxRCSB PDB 3BTA · 3D model
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Works by cutting a protein that nerve endings need to release their chemical signal, temporarily stopping a nerve from telling a muscle to contract or a gland to activate.
How it works
Botox is made from a toxin produced by the same bacterium that causes botulism food poisoning, built from two connected protein pieces. One piece latches onto the outside of a nerve ending and lets the toxin get inside the cell. Once inside, the other piece acts like a pair of molecular scissors: it cuts a specific protein that nerve cells need in order to release their chemical messenger, acetylcholine. Without that release, the nerve can't tell a muscle to contract or a gland to fire normally. The effect is temporary — the nerve ending eventually regrows what it needs, usually over a few months, and normal signaling comes back.
What it’s used for
Doctors use Botox injections to treat a wide range of medical conditions, not just wrinkles: chronic migraine, muscle spasticity, cervical dystonia (a neck-muscle disorder), excessive underarm sweating, an overactive bladder, and eye conditions like crossed eyes or uncontrollable eyelid spasms. Under a separate cosmetic label, Botox Cosmetic is approved to temporarily smooth frown lines, crow's feet, forehead lines, and neck bands.
- Mechanism
- Acetylcholine release inhibitor (SNAP-25-cleaving neurotoxin)
- Drug class
- Bacterial neurotoxin
- Therapeutic area
- Neurology