Helitropium europaeum L. population Garmsar was shown to contain three major alkaloids: heliotrine N-oxide (2), lasiocarpine (4) and lasiocarpine N-oxide (5); and four minor alkaloids: heliotrine (I), europine (3), acetyllasiocarpine (6) and a novel alkaloid acetyllasiocarpine N-oxide (7).

The moth Utetheisa ornatrix (family Arctiidae) depends on pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) for defense. It sequesters the toxins as a larva from its food plants (Crotalaria species: family Fabaceae) and retains them through metamorphosis. We report here that PA-possession in the adult female U. ornatrix has a life-shortening effect, suggesting that, by putting the compounds to use, the moth may be...

We all are exposed through air, food, drinks and skin contacts to harmful compounds throughout the period of our lifetime, including, a variety of pharmaceuticals and food-de‐ rived carcinogen metabolite (e.g. N-acetoxy-PhIP), [52], plant toxins (such as glycoalkaloids in nightshades1, cyanogenic glucosides 2, or pyrrolizidine alkaloids in some herbs and herbal teas), xenobiotics3 producing dur...

The presence of an endophytic fungus, Acremonium coenophialum, in tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) deterred aphid feeding by Rhopalosiphum padi and Schizaphis graminum. Both species of aphid were unable to survive when confined to endophyte-infected tall fescue plants. Feeding deterrents and toxic factors to R. padi and Oncopeltus fasciatus, large milkweed bug, were primarily associated with a...

This volume of the IARC Monographs considers some traditional herbal medicines, including extracts from certain plants of the genera Aristolochia, Rubia, Morinda and Senecio; some mycotoxins, specifically aflatoxins and fumonisin B1; and two industrial chemicals, naphthalene and styrene. Of these, the Monographs have previously evaluated several of the pyrrolizidine alkaloids that occur in cert...

A number of different approaches have been used to determine the catalytic selectivity of individual human enzymes toward procarcinogens. Studies with cytochrome P450 (P450) enzymes and glutathione S-transferases are summarized here, and recent work with pyrrolizidine alkaloids, aflatoxins, 4,4'-methylenebis(2-chloroaniline), and ethyl carbamate is discussed. In some cases a single enzyme can c...

Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids (PAs) are currently one of the most important botanical hepatotoxic ingredients. Glutathion (GSH) metabolism is the most reported pathway involved in hepatotoxicity mechanism of PAs. We speculate that, for different PAs, there should be a common mechanism underlying their hepatotoxicity in GSH metabolism. Computational methods were adopted to test our hypothesis in consi...