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Poison is a related but broader term that encompasses both toxins and toxicants; poisons may enter the body through any means - typically inhalation, ingestion, or skin absorption. Toxin, toxicant, and poison are often used interchangeably despite these subtle differences in definition.
Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. [1] 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).
In some cases the level or exposure-time may be critical, with some substances only becoming neurotoxic in certain doses or time periods. Some of the most common naturally occurring brain toxins that lead to neurotoxicity as a result of long term drug use are amyloid beta (Aβ), glutamate, dopamine, and oxygen radicals.
There are chemicals in cookware, food, water, clothes and furniture that could cause problems for people’s health. These PFAS, or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances — sometimes ...
Toxication, toxification or toxicity exaltation is the conversion of a chemical compound into a more toxic form in living organisms or in substrates such as soil or water.The conversion can be caused by enzymatic metabolism in the organisms, as well as by abiotic chemical reactions.
By contrast, a toxin is a poison produced naturally by an organism (e.g. plant, animal, insect). [2] The 2011 book A Textbook of Modern Toxicology states, "A toxin is a toxicant that is produced by a living organism and is not used as a synonym for toxicant—all toxins are toxicants, but not all toxicants are toxins.
Neurotoxins are an extensive class of exogenous chemical neurological insults [4] that can adversely affect function in both developing and mature nervous tissue. [5] The term can also be used to classify endogenous compounds, which, when abnormally contacted, can prove neurologically toxic. [ 4 ]
However, some toxins can cause irreversible permanent damage. Depending on the intensity of the poison of the substance it [2] can affect just one particular organ system or they may produce generalized toxicity by affecting a number of systems. A variety of symptoms occur depending on how and where the toxic injuries affect the body.