ReviewBrain research bulletin2019
Konzo: a distinct neurological disease associated with food (cassava) cyanogenic poisoning.
Review in Brain research bulletin, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed, 75 citations in OpenAlex.
- Poison Apple-like Fruit Ingestion: A Case Report and Review of Manchineel Fruit Toxicity.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026Review
- Konzo: a nutrition-related tropical spastic paraparesis.BMJ case reports · 2026Article
- Genomic prediction accuracy for low hydrogen cyanide selection in fresh cassava roots. Comparative model analysis.BMC plant biology · 2026Article
- Surviving cyanide poisoning: A case report highlighting the role of early antidote use.Toxicology reports · 2025Article
- Redirecting Intermediary Metabolism to Counteract Cyanide Poisoning.FASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology · 2025Review
- β-Glucosidase Activity ofFoods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Glutathione peroxidase 3 is a potential biomarker for konzo.Nature communications · 2024Article
- Children's cognitive impairment associated with cassava cyanide in Democratic Republic of the Congo: Burden of disease.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
- Total and Free Hydrogen Cyanide Content and Profile of Bioactive Amines in CommercialFoods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Old poisons, new signaling molecules: the case of hydrogen cyanide.Journal of experimental botany · 2023Article
- Female naturalists and the patterns of suppression of women scientists in history: the example of Maria Sibylla Merian and her contributions about useful plants.Journal of ethnobiology and ethnomedicine · 2023Article
- Adaptations in the transformation of cassava (Frontiers in nutrition · 2023Article
- Excess iodine exposure acutely increases salivary iodide and antimicrobial hypoiodous acid concentrations in humans.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Environmental Toxins and Brain: Life on Earth is in Danger.Annals of Indian Academy of Neurology · 2022Article
- CRISPR-Cas9-mediated knockout ofFrontiers in plant science · 2022Article
- Targeted mutagenesis of theFrontiers in plant science · 2022Article
- The hepatic compensatory response to elevated systemic sulfide promotes diabetes.Cell reports · 2021Article
- The gut microbiome in konzo.Nature communications · 2021Observational
- Article
- Neurodevelopmental assessment at one year of age predicts neuropsychological performance at six years in a cohort of West African Children.Child neuropsychology : a journal on normal and abnormal development in childhood and adolescence · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Epidemics of neurodegenerative diseases putatively caused by food toxins have been reported in the tropics with no clear understanding of their pathogenetic mechanisms. These diseases include the disease named Konzo that has been well documented in sub-Sahara Africa, mostly among children and women of childbearing age. Outbreaks of Konzo have occurred in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, Tanzania, Central African Republic, Angola, Cameroun, and most recently in Zambia. The main clinical picture consists of a symmetrical, permanent and irreversible spastic paraparesis (motor neuron disease) with no signs of sensory or genitourinary impairments. Recently, cognitive impairments and neurodevelopmental delays have been reported among school-aged and very young children. The exact pathogenetic mechanisms of the disease remain unknown. Epidemiological studies consistently show an association between outbreaks of the disease and chronic dietary reliance on insufficiently processed cyanogenic cassava (manioc or tapioca). Biochemical and toxicological studies suggest that the metabolites of linamarin (α-Hydroxyisobutyronitrile β-D-glucopyranoside, the main cassava cyanogen), notably cyanide (mitochondrial toxin), thiocyanate (AMPA chaotropic agent), and cyanate (protein carbamoylating agent) may play an important role in the pathogenesis of Konzo. Experimental data suggest that thiol-redox and protein- folding mechanisms may also be perturbed. Factors of susceptibility including genetics, poor nutrition, poverty and dietary cyanogen exposure, or their interactions have been suggested. Serological studies have ruled out the role of retroviruses such as the human lymphotropic viruses HIV-I/II or HTLV-I/II. Because there is no cure for Konzo, prevention of the disease remains of paramount importance. Prospects for cognitive rehabilitation still need to be explored and tested.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.