Lecture 28: Poisonous Plants Flashcards
Many of the medicinal plants we talked about and all the hallucinogenic ones can be toxic depending on ______
the dose
What are the 4 types of arrow adn dart poisons?
Yew:
Aconite (the most toxic plant out there)
Kombe
Curare
______ is a competitive antagonist that blocks nicotinic acetylcholine receptors on the postsynaptic membrane of the neuromuscular junction
Curare
_____ Mostly S. America.
Powerful muscle relaxant that causes death by paralyzing the respiratory system.
Curare
_____ mixed with milkweeds (Euphorbia). Africa. Powerful cardiac relaxant.
Kombe
_____ Europe, Asia, N America. Respiratory paralysis
Aconite
____ Europe & Asia, Heart failure
Yew
____ produced the first Western book about poisons, Nicander of Colophon 197-130 BC
Ancient Greeks
What family is poison hemlock and water hemlock?
Carrot
What is the most toxic plant in NA known as “suicide root”?
water hemlock
_____ is native to Europe but introduced to N America (including Canada) where it grows in disturbed places.
Poison hemlock
What is the chemical in poison hemlock that causes respiratory paralysis?
coniine
___ was sentenced to death through suicide with the poison hemlock
Socrates
______ often tested the potency of their mixtures (probably containing multiple toxins) on animals, slaves or convicts.
Professional poisoners
Emperor nero had Locusta has professional poisoner
What is the main symptom of aconite?
respiratory paralysis
What family of fruits contain a lot of amygdaline/cyanides?
Rosaceae
peach (Prunus persica); apple (Malus domestica); pear tree (Pyrus communis); cherries (Prunus avium);
______ stops cellular respiration by inhibiting an enzyme in the mitochondria called cytochrome oxidase.
Cyanide
What is the main effect Hellebore?
respiratory paralysis
What is the main effect of Belladona and Mandrake?
Death by respiratory and cardiovascular failure.
What are the chemicals in Belladona, what are the chemicals in Mandrake?
Atropine, scopolamine, hyoscyamine
alkaloids are anticholinergic
True or False: By mid-1600 poisoning had become an art taught in schools
True
_____ is known to have over 600 victims are known to have been killed, mostly husbands of unhappy spouses.
Agua Tofana
What was the plant used in agua tofana?
Belladona
True or False: Agua tofana was sold to women both as a cosmetic and a devotionary object in vials that included a picture of St Nicholas
True
What were the 4 strange antidotes to poisons?
Pregustatores”
“Unicorn’s horn”, rhino horn, or various gemstones
Toadstones: calcified stones from the stomach of toads
Religious artifacts & talismans
_____ is an annual plant cultivated often as ornamental in Canada and the U.S.A. Plants grow very fast, reaching up to 2 m in just a couple of months.
castor been
The ______ designed a pen-sized assassination weapon to deliver ricin pellets. It was used in a umbrella?
KGB
______ is the 3rd most toxic substance after plutonium and botulism
Ricin
How does ricin work?
Ricin works its harm by destroying ribosomes.
Questions: One of the questions about ricin communis is incorrect?
B, ricin is the most toxic compound, an alkaloid
Questions: What is the cellular mechanism by cyanide?
Cyanide stops cellular respiration by inhibiting an enzyme in the mitochondria called cytochrome oxidase.
