THE RUDOLF REPORT

7. Zyklon B for the Killingof Human Beings7.1. Toxicological Effect of HCNThe effect of hydrogen cyanide is based on the fact that it paralyzesthe respiration of every individual cell in the body. Oxygen canno longer be transported from the blood through the cell walls into thecells. 413 As the vital cell functions are thereby starved of oxygen, theanimal or human being suffocates.Insects and, in particular, insect eggs, are considerably less sensitiveto hydrogen cyanide than warm-blooded animals. On the onehand, this is due to their greater resistance (slower metabolism). On theother hand, this is due to the fact that lethal concentrations of the gasmust penetrate every crack and fissure, no matter how tiny. Every hemand seam of all the garment in the property to be fumigated must befilled with the poison in order to kill, for example, every concealedlouse. Warm-blooded animals, by contrast, are rapidly exposed to highconcentrations of the gas, not only because of their size, but above alldue to their breathing through lungs.Lethal doses of cyanide can be ingested orally, inhaled, or absorbedthrough the skin. Oral poisoning (for example, with potassiumcyanide KCN) is very painful due to muscular convulsions caused bycell suffocation. Even though victims of poisoning by inhalation ofhigh concentrations of hydrogen cyanide become more rapidly unconsciousthan with oral ingestion, painful convulsions caused by muscularsuffocation appear in these cases as well. For this reason, executionby use of hydrogen cyanide gas, as performed in some U.S. states, hasrecently been a topic of much controversy; see chapter 1. A dose of 1mg cyanide per kg body weight is generally considered lethal. Nonlethaldoses of cyanide are quickly decomposed and excreted by thebody. 414413 Reversible attachment of the cyanide onto the Fe 3+ of the cell-specific enzyme of respiration,cytochromoxidase, thereby interrupting the supply of oxygen to the cells, rendering impossiblethe processes of respiration which are essential for the life of the cell.414 Binding onto sulfur (to form rhodanide).191