Dermatoxin
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Dermatoxin
A dermatoxin (from ''derma'', the Greek word for skin) is a toxic chemical that damages skin, mucous membranes, or both, often leading to tissue necrosis. Dermatoxins can be drugs, natural chemicals, or synthetic chemicals. The severity of the effects of a dermatoxic agent is strongly dependent on the dose, route of exposure, rate at which it spreads, and the health of the afflicted individual. Examples of dermatoxic substances * T-2 toxin * Sterigmatocystin * Sulfur mustard * Psoralen * Cantharidin See also * Vesicant A blister agent (or vesicant), is a chemical compound that causes severe skin, eye and mucosal pain and irritation. They are named for their ability to cause severe chemical burns, resulting in painful water blisters on the bodies of those affe ... References External links * Toxins by organ system affected {{med-toxic-stub ...
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Sterigmatocystin
Sterigmatocystin is a polyketide mycotoxin produced by certain species of ''Aspergillus''. The toxin is naturally found in some cheeses. Sterigmatocystin is a toxic metabolite structurally closely related to the aflatoxins as it is the penultimate precursor of aflatoxins B1 and G1. It contains a xanthone nucleus attached to a bifuran structure. Sterigmatocystin is mainly produced by the fungi ''Aspergillus nidulans'' and '' A. versicolor''. It has been reported in mouldy grain, green coffee beans and cheese although information on its occurrence in foods is limited. It appears to occur much less frequently than the aflatoxins, although analytical methods for its determination have not been as sensitive until recently, and so it is possible that small concentrations in food commodities may not always have been detected. Although it is a potent liver carcinogen similar to aflatoxin B1, current knowledge suggests that it is nowhere near as widespread in its occurrence. If this is th ...
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Greek Language
Greek ( el, label=Modern Greek, Ελληνικά, Elliniká, ; grc, Ἑλληνική, Hellēnikḗ) is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Italy (Calabria and Salento), southern Albania, and other regions of the Balkans, the Black Sea coast, Asia Minor, and the Eastern Mediterranean. It has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning at least 3,400 years of written records. Its writing system is the Greek alphabet, which has been used for approximately 2,800 years; previously, Greek was recorded in writing systems such as Linear B and the Cypriot syllabary. The alphabet arose from the Phoenician script and was in turn the basis of the Latin, Cyrillic, Armenian, Coptic, Gothic, and many other writing systems. The Greek language holds a very important place in the history of the Western world. Beginning with the epics of Homer, ancient Greek literature includes many works of lasting impo ...
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Toxic
Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a substructure of the organism, such as a cell ( cytotoxicity) or an organ such as the liver (hepatotoxicity). By extension, the word may be metaphorically used to describe toxic effects on larger and more complex groups, such as the family unit or society at large. Sometimes the word is more or less synonymous with poisoning in everyday usage. A central concept of toxicology is that the effects of a toxicant are dose-dependent; even water can lead to water intoxication when taken in too high a dose, whereas for even a very toxic substance such as snake venom there is a dose below which there is no detectable toxic effect. Toxicity is species-specific, making cross-species analysis problematic. Newer paradigms and metrics are evolving to bypass ...
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Skin
Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other cuticle, animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have different cellular differentiation, developmental origin, structure and chemical composition. The adjective cutaneous means "of the skin" (from Latin ''cutis'' 'skin'). In mammals, the skin is an organ (anatomy), organ of the integumentary system made up of multiple layers of ectodermal tissue (biology), tissue and guards the underlying muscles, bones, ligaments, and internal organs. Skin of a different nature exists in amphibians, reptiles, and birds. Skin (including cutaneous and subcutaneous tissues) plays crucial roles in formation, structure, and function of extraskeletal apparatus such as horns of bovids (e.g., cattle) and rhinos, cervids' antlers, giraffids' ossicones, armadillos' osteoderm, and os penis/os clitoris. All mammals have som ...
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Mucous Membrane
A mucous membrane or mucosa is a membrane that lines various cavities in the body of an organism and covers the surface of internal organs. It consists of one or more layers of epithelial cells overlying a layer of loose connective tissue. It is mostly of endodermal origin and is continuous with the skin at body openings such as the eyes, eyelids, ears, inside the nose, inside the mouth, lips, the genital areas, the urethral opening and the anus. Some mucous membranes secrete mucus, a thick protective fluid. The function of the membrane is to stop pathogens and dirt from entering the body and to prevent bodily tissues from becoming dehydrated. Structure The mucosa is composed of one or more layers of epithelial cells that secrete mucus, and an underlying lamina propria of loose connective tissue. The type of cells and type of mucus secreted vary from organ to organ and each can differ along a given tract. Mucous membranes line the digestive, respiratory and reproductive trac ...
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Necrosis
Necrosis () is a form of cell injury which results in the premature death of cells in living tissue by autolysis. Necrosis is caused by factors external to the cell or tissue, such as infection, or trauma which result in the unregulated digestion of cell components. In contrast, apoptosis is a naturally occurring programmed and targeted cause of cellular death. While apoptosis often provides beneficial effects to the organism, necrosis is almost always detrimental and can be fatal. Cellular death due to necrosis does not follow the apoptotic signal transduction pathway, but rather various receptors are activated and result in the loss of cell membrane integrity and an uncontrolled release of products of cell death into the extracellular space. This initiates in the surrounding tissue an inflammatory response, which attracts leukocytes and nearby phagocytes which eliminate the dead cells by phagocytosis. However, microbial damaging substances released by leukocytes would crea ...
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T-2 Toxin
T-2 Mycotoxin (pronounced as 'Tee-Two') is a trichothecene mycotoxin. It is a naturally occurring mold byproduct of ''Fusarium'' spp. fungus which is toxic to humans and animals. The clinical condition it causes is '' alimentary toxic aleukia'' and a host of symptoms related to organs as diverse as the skin, airway, and stomach. Ingestion may come from consumption of moldy whole grains. T-2 can be absorbed through human skin. Although no significant systemic effects are expected after dermal contact in normal agricultural or residential environments, local skin effects can not be excluded. Hence, skin contact with T-2 should be limited. History Alimentary toxic aleukia (ATA), a disease which is caused by trichothecenes like T-2 mycotoxin, killed many thousands of USSR citizens in the Orenburg District in the 1940s. It was reported that the mortality rate was 10% of the entire population in that area. During the 1970s it was proposed that the consumption of contaminated food was ...
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Sulfur Mustard
Mustard gas or sulfur mustard is a chemical compound belonging to a family of cytotoxic and blister agents known as mustard agents. The name ''mustard gas'' is technically incorrect: the substance, when dispersed, is often not actually a gas, but is instead in the form of a fine mist of liquid droplets.https://www.acs.org/content/dam/acsorg/education/resources/highschool/chemmatters/gc-mustard-gas-personal-safety-and-natl-security.pdf Mustard gases form blisters on exposed skin and in the lungs, often resulting in prolonged illness ending in death. The active ingredient in typical mustard gas is the organosulfur compound bis(2-chloroethyl) sulfide. In the wider sense, compounds with the structural element are known as ''sulfur mustards'' and ''nitrogen mustards'', respectively. Such compounds are potent alkylating agents, which can interfere with several biological processes. History as chemical weapons As a chemical weapon, mustard gas was first used in World War I, and has ...
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Psoralen
Psoralen (also called psoralene) is the parent compound in a family of naturally occurring organic compounds known as the linear furanocoumarins. It is structurally related to coumarin by the addition of a fused furan ring, and may be considered as a derivative of umbelliferone. Psoralen occurs naturally in the seeds of ''Psoralea corylifolia'', as well as in the common fig, celery, parsley, West Indian satinwood, and in all citrus fruits. It is widely used in PUVA (psoralen + UVA) treatment for psoriasis, eczema, vitiligo, and cutaneous T-cell lymphoma; these applications are typically through the use of medications such as Methoxsalen. Many furanocoumarins are extremely toxic to fish, and some are deposited in streams in Indonesia to catch fish. Uses Psoralen is a mutagen, and is used for this purpose in molecular biology research. Psoralen intercalates into DNA and on exposure to ultraviolet (UVA) radiation can form monoadducts and covalent interstrand cross-links (ICL) w ...
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Cantharidin
Cantharidin is an odorless, colorless fatty substance of the terpenoid class, which is secreted by many species of blister beetles. It is a burn agent or a poison in large doses, but preparations containing it were historically used as aphrodisiacs (Spanish fly). In its natural form, cantharidin is secreted by the male blister beetle and given to the female as a copulatory gift during mating. Afterwards, the female beetle covers her eggs with it as a defense against predators. Poisoning from cantharidin is a significant veterinary concern, especially in horses, but it can also be poisonous to humans if taken internally (where the source is usually experimental self-exposure). Externally, cantharidin is a potent vesicant (blistering agent), exposure to which can cause severe chemical burns. Properly dosed and applied, the same properties have also been used therapeutically, for instance for treatment of skin conditions such as molluscum contagiosum infection of the skin. Cantharidi ...
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Vesicant
A blister agent (or vesicant), is a chemical compound that causes severe skin, eye and mucosal pain and irritation. They are named for their ability to cause severe chemical burns, resulting in painful water blisters on the bodies of those affected. Although the term is often used in connection with large-scale burns caused by chemical spills or chemical warfare agents,Center for Disease Control
some naturally occurring substances such as are also blister-producing agents (vesicants).
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