Lathyrism is a condition caused by eating certain

legumes A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock fo ...

of the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

Lathyrus ''Lathyrus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family Fabaceae, and contains approximately 160 species. Commonly known as peavines or vetchlings, they are native to temperate areas, with a breakdown of 52 species in Europe, 30 spec ...

''. There are three types of lathyrism: ''

neurolathyrism Neurolathyrism, is a neurological disease of humans, caused by eating certain legumes of the genus ''Lathyrus''. This disease is mainly associated with the consumption of '' Lathyrus sativus'' (also known as ''grass pea'', ''chickling pea'', ''ke ...

'', ''

osteolathyrism Osteolathyrism, sometimes referred to as odoratism, is a form of the disease Lathyrism. The disease results from the ingestion of '' Lathyrus odoratus'' seeds (sweet peas). The toxin found in the sweet peas is ( beta-aminopropionitrile), which a ...

'', and ''

angiolathyrism Angiolathyrism is a form of Lathyrism disease. It is mainly caused the consumption of '' Lathyrus sativus'' (also known as ''grass pea'') and to a lesser degree by ''Lathyrus cicera'', '' Lathyrus ochrus'' and ''Lathyrus clymenum'' Neurolathyrism is the type associated with the consumption of legumes in the genus ''

'' that contain the

toxin A toxin is a naturally occurring organic poison produced by metabolic activities of living cells or organisms. Toxins occur especially as a protein or conjugated protein. The term toxin was first used by organic chemist Ludwig Brieger (1849– ...

ODAP. ODAP ingestion results in

motorneuron A motor neuron (or motoneuron or efferent neuron) is a neuron whose cell body is located in the motor cortex, brainstem or the spinal cord, and whose axon (fiber) projects to the spinal cord or outside of the spinal cord to directly or indirect ...

death. The result is paralysis and muscle atrophy of the lower limbs. Osteolathyrism, a different type of lathyrism, affects the

connective tissue Connective tissue is one of the four primary types of animal tissue, along with epithelial tissue, muscle tissue, and nervous tissue. It develops from the mesenchyme derived from the mesoderm the middle embryonic germ layer. Connective tiss ...

s, not the motorneurons. Osteolathyrism results from the ingestion of ''

Lathyrus odoratus The sweet pea, ''Lathyrus odoratus'', is a flowering plant in the genus ''Lathyrus'' in the family Fabaceae (legumes), native to Sicily, southern Italy and the Aegean Islands. It is an annual climbing plant, growing to a height of , where suita ...

'' seeds (sweet peas), and is often referred to as odoratism. It is caused by a different toxin,

beta-aminopropionitrile Aminopropionitrile, also known as β-aminopropionitrile (BAPN), is an organic compound with both amine and nitrile functional groups. It is a colourless liquid. The compound occurs naturally and is of interest in the biomedical community. Biochem ...

, which affects the linking of the subunits of

collagen Collagen () is the main structural protein in the extracellular matrix found in the body's various connective tissues. As the main component of connective tissue, it is the most abundant protein in mammals, making up from 25% to 35% of the whole ...

, a major structural

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respo ...

found in

. A third type of lathyrism is angiolathyrism, which is similar to osteolathyrism in its mechanism, employing the toxin beta-aminopropionitrile. The blood vessels are affected, as opposed to bone.

Types

Neurolathyrism

Neurolathyrism is caused by the consumption of large quantities of ''Lathyrus'' grain, specifically the grains in the genus that contain the

glutamate Glutamic acid (symbol Glu or E; the ionic form is known as glutamate) is an α-amino acid that is used by almost all living beings in the biosynthesis of proteins. It is a non-essential nutrient for humans, meaning that the human body can syn ...

analogue neurotoxin ODAP (also known as β-''N''-oxalyl-amino-L-alanine, or BOAA). ''

Lathyrus sativus ''Lathyrus sativus'', also known as grass pea, cicerchia, blue sweet pea, chickling pea, chickling vetch, Indian pea, white pea and white vetch,'' Kew GardensLathyrus sativus'' (grass pea) is a legume (family Fabaceae) commonly grown for human ...

'' (also known as ''grass pea'', ''chickling pea'', ''kesari dal'', or ''almorta'') and to a lesser degree with ''

Lathyrus cicera ''Lathyrus cicera'' is a species of wild pea known by the common names red pea, red vetchling and flatpod peavine. It is native to Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East, and it is known from other places as an introduced species. This is a h ...

'', ''

Lathyrus ochrus ''Lathyrus ochrus'', the Cyprus vetch, is a species of annual herb in the family Fabaceae. They are climbers and have compound, broad leaves. Flowers are visited by Old World swallowtails and '' Oxythyrea funesta''. Sources References { ...

'' and ''

Lathyrus clymenum ''Lathyrus clymenum'', also called Spanish vetchling, is a flowering plant in the family Fabaceae, native to the Mediterranean. The seeds are used to prepare a Greek dish called fava santorinis. The plant is cultivated on the island of Santori ...

Osteolathyrism

Osteolathyrism affects the bones and connecting tissues, instead of the nervous system. It is a skeletal disorder. It is caused by the toxin BAPN, which inhibits the copper-containing

enzyme Enzymes () are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecules known as products. A ...

lysyl oxidase Lysyl oxidase (LOX), also known as protein-lysine 6-oxidase, is an enzyme that, in humans, is encoded by the ''LOX'' gene. It catalyzes the conversion of lysine molecules into highly reactive aldehydes that form cross-links in extracellular matri ...

, responsible for cross-linking tropocollagen and proelastin. BAPN is also a

metabolic product In biochemistry, a metabolic pathway is a linked series of chemical reactions occurring within a cell. The reactants, products, and intermediates of an enzymatic reaction are known as metabolites, which are modified by a sequence of chemical reac ...

of a compound present in the sprouted seeds of grasspea, pea and lentil.

Angiolathyrism

Angiolathyrism affects the collagen in blood capillaries. It is also caused by the toxin beta-aminopropionitrile.

Prevention

Eating the grasspea with legumes having high concentrations of sulphur-based

amino acid Amino acids are organic compounds that contain both amino and carboxylic acid functional groups. Although hundreds of amino acids exist in nature, by far the most important are the alpha-amino acids, which comprise proteins. Only 22 alpha am ...

s reduces the risk of lathyrism if such grain is available. Some states in India have banned the sale of ''Lathyrus'' seed in order to prevent their consumption, which in turn lessens the possibility of lathyrism in the general population.

History

The first mentioned intoxication goes back to ancient India.

Hippocrates Hippocrates of Kos (; grc-gre, Ἱπποκράτης ὁ Κῷος, Hippokrátēs ho Kôios; ), also known as Hippocrates II, was a Greek physician of the classical period who is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of ...

mentions a neurological disorder in 46 B.C. in Greece caused by Lathyrus seed. During the

Spanish War of Independence The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain, ...

against Napoleon, grasspea served as a

famine food A famine food or poverty food is any inexpensive or readily available food used to nourish people in times of hunger and starvation, whether caused by extreme poverty, such as during economic depression or war, or by natural disasters such as ...

. This was the subject of one of

Francisco de Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 174616 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, and ...

's famous aquatint prints titled ''Gracias a la Almorta'' ("Thanks to the Grasspea"), depicting poor people surviving on a porridge made from grasspea flour, one of them lying on the floor, already crippled by it. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, on the order of Colonel I. Murgescu, commandant of the

Vapniarka concentration camp The Vapniarka concentration camp was a concentration camp established in Vapniarka, Ukraine. History Soon after Romania, under the leadership of Ion Antonescu, joined the war on the Axis side and took part in the invasion of the Soviet Union, ...

Transnistria Transnistria, officially the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (PMR), is an unrecognised breakaway state that is internationally recognised as a part of Moldova. Transnistria controls most of the narrow strip of land between the Dniester riv ...

, the detainees - most of them Jews - were fed nearly exclusively with grasspea. Consequently, they became ill from lathyrism.isurvived.org
''The Holocaust in Romania Under the Antonescu Government'', by Marcu Rozen.

Related conditions

Disorders that are clinically similar are

konzo Konzo is an epidemic paralytic disease occurring among hunger-stricken rural populations in Africa where a diet dominated by insufficiently processed cassava results in simultaneous malnutrition and high dietary cyanide intake. Konzo was first ...

and

Lytico-bodig disease Lytico-bodig (also Lytigo-bodig) disease, Guam disease, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis-parkinsonism-dementia (ALS-PDC) is a neurodegenerative disease of uncertain etiology endemic to the Chamorro people of the island of Guam in Micronesia. ''Ly ...

References

{{authority control Toxic effect of noxious substances eaten as food Lathyrus