Also called jequirity beans, these piously-named seeds contain abrin, an extremely deadly ribosome-inhibiting protein. Rosary peas are native to tropical areas and are often used in jewelry and prayer rosaries. While the seeds are not poisonous if intact, seeds that are scratched, broken, or chewed can be lethal. It only takes 3 micrograms of abrin to kill an adult, less than the amount of poison in one seed, and it is said that numerous jewelry makers have been made ill or died after accidentally pricking their fingers while working with the seeds. Like ricin, abrin prevents protein synthesis within cells and can cause organ failure within four days.
