Bz

Bz is a shorthand that appears in several unrelated contexts, and its meaning is highly dependent on the field of use. In historical and chemical defense literature, BZ commonly refers to 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate, a potent anticholinergic incapacitating agent developed in the mid-20th century. It acts as a non-selective muscarinic receptor antagonist, producing delirium, confusion, memory impairment, tachycardia, dry mouth, and blurred vision. Onset after exposure is typically a few hours, with symptoms potentially lasting days. BZ is regulated under international conventions on chemical weapons, and treatment is supportive, as there is no widely deployed antidote.

In geography and international coding, Bz is the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code for Belize. Belize also uses the internet country code top-level domain .bz, and its official currency is the Belize dollar (code BZD). These codes are used in international data interchange, domain addressing, and financial transactions.

In organic chemistry, Bz is a common abbreviation for the benzoyl group or benzoylation. The benzoyl protecting group or benzoyl moiety is denoted by Bz in various contexts, and benzoylation is a routine method for introducing or preserving a carbonyl-containing substituent on rings or heteroatoms. This usage helps distinguish benzoyl derivatives from related groups such as benzyl (Bn) or other acyl groups.

Overall, Bz is a context-dependent term spanning chemical warfare history, geographic coding, and synthetic chemistry. When encountering the term, identifying the domain is essential to determine its intended meaning.