Ricin is a lethal substance extracted from the seeds of the castor oil plant and

Question

Ricin is a lethal substance extracted from the seeds of the castor oil plant and was used in assassination attempts during the Cold War, as well as being "popularized" by many TV shows over the years. The lethal dose in humans is around 22 kg per 1 kilogram of body weight. Ricin is a protein with a molar mass of about 65,000 g/mol. If an average man weighing 85 kg is injected with ricin that is initially all constrained within the 5.0 L of blood in his body, what the approximate molarity of ricin in his blood required to reach the lethal dose? (Show your work!) 3.2 times 10^-6 M 5.83 times 10^-9 M 7.1 times 10^-7 M 8.3 times 10^-8 M 4.7 times 10^-12 M

Explanation / Answer

Ans b) 5.8 x 10-9 M

The lethal dose for this person weighing 85 kg will be 85 x 22 = 1870 microgram or 1.87 x 10-3 g

number of moles = 1.87 x 10-3 / 65000 = 2.88 x 10-8 moles

Molarity = no. of moles / volume of solution in L

M = 2.88 x 10-8 / 5

M = 5.8 x 10-9 M

Related Questions

Navigate

• Browse (All)
• Browse R
• Subjects

---

---

Integrity-first tutoring: explanations and feedback only — we do not complete graded work. Learn more.