Historical Background Flashcards
(29 cards)
why is toxicology different to other sciences ?
toxicology requires public dimension- responsibility because of the need to assess the safety of chemicals to which we are exposed
define toxicology:
toxicology is the study of the harmful effects of chemical or physical agents on living organisms, the mechanisms underlying these effects and the conditions under which they are likely to occur
what is the ebers papyrus?
lists of recipes for medicines to treat various illnesses and describes the poisonous properties of some plants and plant products
dated about 1500BC
what is hellebore?
it is a plant
its crushed roots poisoned water which then contained toxins- hellebrin
hellebrin targets sodium/potassium ATPase in the heart and this severly affects cardiac function causing death
in the bronze age what were poisons used in ?
in greece in 1300-1100BC poisons were used in warfare
trojan war- arrows were coated in a variety of poisonous substances so that even a minor wound could be fatal
what occurred in about 600BC ?
first documented case of deliberate mass poisoning
athens and sicyon beseiged the city of kirrha - seige came to an end when the attackers poisoned the water supplies to the city with the roots of hellebore plant
caused the people of kirrha to become incapacitated so they could defend themselves
what occurred in about 400BC?
the state directed murder of the philospher socrates in 399BC
socrates was convicted of corrupting athenian youth and interfering with the religion of the city
socrates penalty was death so he took it into his own hands and drank a fatal draft of hemlock
what happened in about 100BC?
mithridates VI of pontus ruled northern western turkey
obessed with poisons and feared being poisoned
he poisoned several members of his own family to try and discover theriac - universal antidote to all poisons
credited with discovery of a complex mixture of of antidotes= mithridatium
what occurred in 32BC ?
roman dictator sulla passed first laws against poisoning and sale, purchase and possession
even though this was present poisoning remained a important method for eliminating political rivals
what happened in about 130AD?
nicander of colophon wrote oldest book to have survived from ancient times on the subject of poisoning and treatments
what happened in the dark ages ?
little development of toxicology because there are not many records from this period
jewish scholar moses maimonides published text on poisons and their antidotes which was very influential
the early alchemists discovered white arsenic “KING OF POISONS” arsenic remained poisoners favourite toxicant until the development in the 19th century of reliable tests that could detect it
what happened in the renaissance ?
“GOLDEN AGE OF POISONING”
1402- pietro d’abano produced a handbook on poisons
renaissance italy and france poisoning for financial, political or sexual gain were common
borgia and medici families frequently poisoned rivals to maintain wealth and power
give examples of professional poisoners in the renaissance period ?
toffana of naples and catherine deshayes monvoisin
what is the central dogma of toxicology and who coined it ?
paracelsus in 16th century
“poison is in everything and no thing is without poison. the dosage makes it either a poison or a remedy “
ALL CHEMICALS HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO BE HARMFUL
what happened in the 17 and 18th centuries ?
= age of enlightenment
start of 18th century bernadino ramazzini published his work on the health of workers and said that “sordid profit comes at the expense of worker health”- he is the founder of occupational therapy
Felice fontana showed that european viper venom selectively induced paralysis of muscle. he also looked at the effects of opium
1775- sir percival pott reported his incidence of scrotal cancer in chimmney sweepers = first recorded case of occupational cancer - the beginning of industrial toxicology
who was the spaniard mathieu orfila?
1787-1853
chemist and physician
founder of modern toxicology
pioneered systematic study of toxic substances and wrote treatise on poisons -1817
who was charles turner thackrah ?
published first treatise of industrial hygiene-1831
what advances in chemistry occurred in 1800-1900?
isolation of morphine from opium and quinine from cinochona bark
first reliable tests for arsenic were developed by marsh in 1836 and by reinsch in 1842
Megendies, bernard and langley laid down foundation of modern physiology and pharmacology
there were advances in biology and chemistry allowing development of foresenic toxicology, discovery of xenobiotic metabolism and detoxification and more rigourous assesment of chemical toxicity in animals
what happened between 1900-1930?
1915- yamagiwa and ichikawa showed that painting the ears of rabbits with coal tar leads to tumour formation - first demonstration of chemical carcinogenesis prompting discovery of the causes of these effects
18 years later lead to discovery of benzopyrene
chemical waarfare in ww1 - 100000 tons of toxicant gases are used
what did a team of german scientist develop in 1940s?
gerhard schrader
developed organophosphate insecticides and nerve gases - sarin and tabun
what did sir rudolf peters develop in 1940s
?
developed british anti-lewisite as an antidote to chemical warfare agent lewisite
it was never actually used in warfare
it was able to chelate heavy metals so it was used in the treatment of poisoning from arsenic, mercury, lead, gold
what did warkany and coworkers discover in the 1940s?
demonstrated that environmental factors such as dietary deficiencies and exposure to radiation adversely intrauterine development of mammals
what did gregg recognise in 1941?
that maternal infection with rubella virus may cause birth defects
when was the clean air introduced and why ?
1956
the london smog in 1952 is thought to have caused 4000 deaths of mainly elderly people with lung and heart disease
