Question:easy

Match the poison with its characteristic feature. Which of the following is correctly matched?

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The most iconic odour in toxicology - bitter almonds.
Updated On: Jun 25, 2026
  • Cyanide - bitter almond smell
  • Carbon monoxide - cherry red discolouration
  • Phosphorus - garlic odour
  • Organophosphate - excessive secretions
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The Correct Option is A

Solution and Explanation

This is a classic toxicology matching item. The signature clue most strongly tied to a poison is the bitter-almond smell of cyanide, which is the intended single best (circled) response.

Cyanide blocks cytochrome c oxidase, producing histotoxic hypoxia; cells cannot use oxygen, so venous blood stays bright red and the breath/tissues carry a bitter-almond odour.

For completeness, the remaining associations are also genuine: carbon monoxide forms carboxyhaemoglobin causing cherry-red lividity; phosphorus (along with arsenic and thallium) gives a garlic-like odour and luminous, "smoking" stools; organophosphates inhibit acetylcholinesterase, flooding the body with acetylcholine and causing copious secretions (lacrimation, salivation, bronchorrhoea) summarised by SLUDGE/DUMBELS.

Among these, the cyanide-almond link is the most distinctive and exam-tested pairing.

\[\boxed{\text{Cyanide} \rightarrow \text{bitter almond smell}}\]
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