Natural Poisons and Venoms: Plant Toxins: Terpenes and Steroids

Biogenic toxins are fascinating natural products characterized by an  enormous diversity of chemical structures and pharmacological  activities. They not only pose hazards to humans and animals, but they  are important components in the interplay of substances and living  beings in nature and, moreover, important sources for new drugs.

The  present book is the first volume of the 5-volume series "Natural  Poisons and Venoms". Volumes 1-3 cover poisons produced by plants,  volume 4 summarizes poisons and venoms of animals and volume 5 deal with  poisons of fungi, cyanobacteria, and other microorganisms.

This  volume starts with a fundamental chapter on history, chemistry and  pharmacology of natural toxins, importance of the toxins for their  producer, potential danger for humans and animals, and general aspects  of toxicology including notes for first aid and proposals for clinical  measures. The following chapters focus on the poisonous representatives  of terpenes and the related steroids. The reader will be informed about  the botany and occurrence of plants producing these toxins, the  chemistry, the biogenesis and the pharmacology of the toxins, possible  causes of poisonings, precautions to avoid poisonings, symptoms of  poisonings of humans and animals, proposals for treatment measures and  the possible usefulness, in the past, in present and in the future, of  these toxins, especially for the development of new medicines.

Numerous  images of plants and chemical structural formulas complete the book.  Extensive lists of literature references are given.

The handbook  is intended for physicians, veterinarians, pharmacists, chemists,  biochemists, food chemists and biologists, for the students in the  relevant fields, and also for interested laymen.

You will be informed about all aspects of natural toxins based on the latest knowledge.