Abstract: Toxins are naturally occurring molecules that are injurious to some living organism. The scientific study of toxins is sometimes referred to as toxinology, a branch of toxicology. Many animals and a few plants secrete venoms to either defend themselves or to paralyze their prey. Generally, venoms are complex mixtures of substances, including toxins, that together exert a greater effect than would a single substance. For instance, phospholipases, proteases, and hyaluronidases, commonly present in animal venoms, facilitate the distribution of ion channel and receptor modulating toxins by permeabilizing lipid membranes (lysolecithin), digesting proteins, and breaking down connective tissues, respectively, that are barriers to the distribution of toxins throughout the body. Marine organisms contain a wide variety of potent venoms and toxins that cause medical problems for those that come in contact with them. In addition, some of the purified toxins are becoming useful chemical tools for biomedical research.
Publication Year: 2014
Publication Date: 2014-01-01
Language: en
Type: book-chapter
Indexed In: ['crossref']
Access and Citation
Cited By Count: 4
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