Acute toxicity of aminoglycoside antibiotics as an aid in detecting botulism.

Gentamicin sulfate or neomycin sulfate injected intraperitoneally into 24- to 27-g mice at a dose of 6.2 mg per mouse elicited botulism-like responses in less than 30 min, but a dose of 3.1 mg per mouse had no observable effect. The normally nontoxic 3.1-mg aminoglycoside dose aggravated the illness induced by an earlier injection of Clostridium botulinum type A or B toxin; it was usually lethal in 2 to 20 min if the preexisting illness was moderate to severe and worsened the condition of mice for about 30 min if the preexisting botulism was mild. The aminoglycoside had no effect when given shortly after the botulinum toxin was injected intraperitoneally; the sensitized state followed a latent period. It rapidly produced botulism-like effects when given to mice which had responded to a mixture of botulinum toxin and another mouse toxic agent with an illness that did not include signs of botulism. An unexpected illness devoid of botulism-like effects was encountered during intestinal colonization of mice by C. botulinum. The appearance of botulism-like signs soon after 3.1 mg of gentamicin sulfate was injected supported other suggestions that this illness included botulism that was masked by the effects of a second cause.