PHAR 100 Chapter Notes - Chapter Mod 1: Lauder Brunton, Shennong, Angina Pectoris

• School: Queen's University
• Department: Pharmacology and Toxicology
• Course: PHAR 100
• Professor: Bill Racz

Document Summary

Influence of poisons in ancient times, medicine men were both doctors and priests --> drug therapy was heavily influenced by both religion and magic. An example of this is peyote in mexico used to achieve a mystical state which contains mescaline. Paracelsus 16th c all substances are poisons. There is none which is not a poison. The right dose differentiates a poison and a remedy. : west and central africa: poisons used in ordeal trials to identify sorcerers. Everyone was given a poison, and those that did not vomit died and were identified: amazon: poison arrows dipped in curare. Causes paralysis and death by preventing acetylcholine from combining with the receptor, preventing muscle contraction. Curare was later used by anesthetists during surgery in small doses, and has now been modified to be safer: russia: ergot fungus is found on rye in wetter seasons.