This book has been developed over many years from several popular courses taught to students at both Birmingham and London universities. It provides an important step in introducing principles and concepts within the field of toxicology. The underlying mechanisms of toxicity are highlighted through examples taken from gases, minerals, plants, fungi, bacteria, marine creatures, industrial chemicals and pharmacological agents.In this second edition, the text has been completely revised and expanded with the addition of six new chapters ? carbon monoxide, hydrofluoric acid, lead, mushroom, toxins, paracetamol, paraquat and diquat. Each chapter is self-sufficient, enabling readers to dip into chapters of interest at random without any lack of understanding. The book is informative, with numerous clinical details, and will appeal to those who wish to delve into this fascinating subject.

A clinical psychiatrist explores the effects of DMT, one of the most powerful psychedelics known. • A behind-the-scenes look at the cutting edge of psychedelic research. • Provides a unique scientific explanation for the phenomenon of alien abduction experiences. From 1990 to 1995 Dr. Rick Strassman conducted U.S. Government-approved and funded clinical research at the University of New Mexico in which he injected sixty volunteers with DMT, one of the most powerful psychedelics known. His detailed account of those sessions is an extraordinarily riveting inquiry into the nature of the human mind and the therapeutic potential of psychedelics. DMT, a plant-derived chemical found in the psychedelic Amazon brew, ayahuasca, is also manufactured by the human brain. In Strassman's volunteers, it consistently produced near-death and mystical experiences. Many reported convincing encounters with intelligent nonhuman presences, aliens, angels, and spirits. Nearly all felt that the sessions were among the most profound experiences of their lives. Strassman's research connects DMT with the pineal gland, considered by Hindus to be the site of the seventh chakra and by Rene Descartes to be the seat of the soul. DMT: The Spirit Molecule makes the bold case that DMT, naturally released by the pineal gland, facilitates the soul's movement in and out of the body and is an integral part of the birth and death experiences, as well as the highest states of meditation and even sexual transcendence. Strassman also believes that "alien abduction experiences" are brought on by accidental releases of DMT. If used wisely, DMT could trigger a period of remarkable progress in the scientific exploration of the most mystical regions of the human mind and soul.

Molecules of Murder is about infamous murderers and famous victims; about people like Harold Shipman, Alexander Litvinenko, Adelaide Bartlett, and Georgi Markov. Few books on poisons analyse these crimes from the viewpoint of the poison itself, doing so throws a new light on how the murders or attempted murders were carried out and ultimately how the perpetrators were uncovered and brought to justice. Part I includes molecules which occur naturally and were originally used by doctors before becoming notorious as murder weapons. Part II deals with unnatural molecules, mainly man-made, and they too have been dangerously misused in famous crimes. The book ends with the most famous poisoning case in recent years, that of Alexander Litvinenko and his death from polonium chloride. The first half of each chapter starts by looking at the target molecule itself, its discovery, its history, its chemistry, its use in medicine, its toxicology, and its effects on the human body. The second half then investigates a famous murder case and reveals the modus operandi of the poisoner and how some were caught, some are still at large, and some literally got away with murder. Molecules of Murder will explain how forensic chemists have developed cunning ways to detect minute traces of dangerous substances, and explain why some of these poisons, which appear so life-threatening, are now being researched as possible life-savers. Award winning science writer John Emsley has assembled another group of true crime and chemistry stories to rival those of his highly acclaimed Elements of Murder.

K.C. Nicolaou - Winner of the Nemitsas Prize 2014 in Chemistry Here, the best-selling author and renowned researcher, K. C. Nicolaou, presents around 40 natural products that all have an enormous impact on our everyday life. Printed in full color throughout with a host of pictures, this book is written in the author's very enjoyable and distinct style, such that each chapter is full of interesting and entertaining information on the facts, stories and people behind the scenes. Molecules covered span the healthy and useful, as well as the much-needed and extremely toxic, including Aspirin, urea, camphor, morphine, strychnine, penicillin, vitamin B12, Taxol, Brevetoxin and quinine. A veritable pleasure to read.

“A fascinating tale of poisons and poisonous deeds which both educates and entertains.” --Kathy Reichs A brilliant blend of science and crime, A TASTE FOR POISON reveals how eleven notorious poisons affect the body--through the murders in which they were used. As any reader of murder mysteries can tell you, poison is one of the most enduring—and popular—weapons of choice for a scheming murderer. It can be slipped into a drink, smeared onto the tip of an arrow or the handle of a door, even filtered through the air we breathe. But how exactly do these poisons work to break our bodies down, and what can we learn from the damage they inflict? In a fascinating blend of popular science, medical history, and true crime, Dr. Neil Bradbury explores this most morbidly captivating method of murder from a cellular level. Alongside real-life accounts of murderers and their crimes—some notorious, some forgotten, some still unsolved—are the equally compelling stories of the poisons involved: eleven molecules of death that work their way through the human body and, paradoxically, illuminate the way in which our bodies function. Drawn from historical records and current news headlines, A Taste for Poison weaves together the tales of spurned lovers, shady scientists, medical professionals and political assassins to show how the precise systems of the body can be impaired to lethal effect through the use of poison. From the deadly origins of the gin & tonic cocktail to the arsenic-laced wallpaper in Napoleon’s bedroom, A Taste for Poison leads readers on a riveting tour of the intricate, complex systems that keep us alive—or don’t.

The bestselling and revolutionary book that serves as a “landmark in our understanding of the mind-body connection” (Deepak Chopra, MD). Why do we feel the way we feel? How do our thoughts and emotions affect our health? In her groundbreaking book Molecules of Emotion, Candace Pert—an extraordinary neuroscientist who played a pivotal role in the discovery of the opiate receptor—provides startling and decisive answers to these and other challenging questions that scientists and philosophers have pondered for centuries. Pert’s pioneering research on how the chemicals inside our bodies form a dynamic information network, linking mind and body, is not only provocative, it is revolutionary. By establishing the biomolecular basis for our emotions and explaining these scientific developments in a clear and accessible way, Pert empowers us to understand ourselves, our feelings, and the connection between our minds and our bodies—or bodyminds—in ways we could never possibly have imagined before. From explaining the scientific basis of popular wisdom about phenomena such as "gut feelings" to making comprehensible recent breakthroughs in cancer and AIDS research, Pert provides us with an intellectual adventure of the highest order. Molecules of Emotion is a landmark work, full of insight and wisdom and possessing that rare power to change the way we see the world and ourselves.

Molecules to Medicine with mTOR: Translating Critical Pathways into Novel Therapeutic Strategies is a one-stop reference that thoroughly covers the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR). mTOR, also known as the mammalian target of rapamycin, is a 289-kDa serine/threonine protein kinase that is ubiquitous throughout the body and has a critical role in gene transcription and protein formation, stem cell development, cell survival and senescence, aging, immunity, tissue regeneration and repair, metabolism, tumorigenesis, oxidative stress, and pathways of programmed cell death that include apoptosis and autophagy. Incorporating a translational medicine approach, this important reference highlights the basic cellular biology of mTOR pathways, presents the role of mTOR during normal physiologic function and disease, and illustrates how the mechanisms of mTOR can be targeted for current and future therapeutic treatment strategies. Coverage of mTOR signaling includes the entire life cycle of cells that impacts multiple systems of the body including those of nervous, cardiovascular, immune, musculoskeletal, endocrine, reproductive, renal, and respiratory origin. - Covers the role of mTOR by internationally recognized expert contributors in the field. - Provides a clear picture of the complexity of mTOR signaling as well as of the different approaches that could target this pathway at various levels. - Includes analysis of the role of mTOR and in both health and disease. - Serves as an important resource for a broad audience of healthcare providers, scientists, drug developers, and students in both clinical and research settings.

As the molecular basis of human disease becomes better characterized, and the implications for understanding the molecular basis of disease becomes realized through improved diagnostics and treatment, Molecular Pathology, Second Edition stands out as the most comprehensive textbook where molecular mechanisms represent the focus. It is uniquely concerned with the molecular basis of major human diseases and disease processes, presented in the context of traditional pathology, with implications for translational molecular medicine. The Second Edition of Molecular Pathology has been thoroughly updated to reflect seven years of exponential changes in the fields of genetics, molecular, and cell biology which molecular pathology translates in the practice of molecular medicine. The textbook is intended to serve as a multi-use textbook that would be appropriate as a classroom teaching tool for biomedical graduate students, medical students, allied health students, and others (such as advanced undergraduates). Further, this textbook will be valuable for pathology residents and other postdoctoral fellows that desire to advance their understanding of molecular mechanisms of disease beyond what they learned in medical/graduate school. In addition, this textbook is useful as a reference book for practicing basic scientists and physician scientists that perform disease-related basic science and translational research, who require a ready information resource on the molecular basis of various human diseases and disease states. - Explores the principles and practice of molecular pathology: molecular pathogenesis, molecular mechanisms of disease, and how the molecular pathogenesis of disease parallels the evolution of the disease - Explains the practice of "molecular medicine and the translational aspects of molecular pathology - Teaches from the perspective of "integrative systems biology - Enhanced digital version included with purchase

How can a plant as beautiful as the foxglove be so deadly and yet for more than a century be used to treat heart disease? The same is true of other naturally occurring molecules as will be revealed in this current book by award-winning author and chemist, John Emsley. More Molecules of Murder follows on from his highly-acclaimed earlier book Molecules of Murder, and again it deals with 14 potential poisons; seven of which are man-made and seven of which are natural. It investigates the crimes committed with them, not from the point of view of the murderers, their victims, or the detectives, but from the poison used. In so doing it throws new light on how these crimes were carried out and ultimately how the perpetrators were uncovered and brought to justice. Each chapter starts by looking at the target molecule itself, its discovery, its chemistry, its often-surprising use in medicine, its effects on the human body, and its toxicology. The rest of the chapter is devoted to murders and attempted murders in which it has been used. But, be reassured that murder by poison is not the threat it once was, thanks to laws which restrict access to such materials and to the skills of analytical chemists in detecting their presence in incredibly tiny amounts.