Author : Islamiyat Folashade Bolarinwa
Publisher : LAP Lambert Academic Publishing
ISBN 13 : 9783659612848
Total Pages : 276 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (128 download)
Book Synopsis Natural Plant Toxins - Cyanogenic Glycosides in Plant Foods by : Islamiyat Folashade Bolarinwa
Download or read book Natural Plant Toxins - Cyanogenic Glycosides in Plant Foods written by Islamiyat Folashade Bolarinwa and published by LAP Lambert Academic Publishing. This book was released on 2014-10-10 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cyanogenic glycosides are natural plant toxicants. They are widely distributed in the plant kingdom including many that are commonly consumed by humans. Cyanogenic glycosides serve as important chemical weapons in the defence of the plant against herbivores because of the potential to generate toxic hydrogen cyanide. Amygdalin is the most common of the cyanogenic glycosides. It is present in abundance in the seeds and kernels of fruits such as apricot, almond, apple, cherry, plum, peach and nectarine. When cyanogenic plants are ingested by humans, enzymes produced by the intestinal microflora are able to hydrolyse intact cyanogenic glycoside to produce hydrogen cyanide in vivo. Cyanide toxicity can occur in humans following the consumption of cyanogenic glycosides in plants at doses between 0.5-3.5 mg kg-1 body weight. Consumption of cyanogenic plants such as cassava root, almond or apricot kernels, has been reported to cause both acute and sub-acute health problems (depending on dose) such as headache, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, dizziness, weakness, mental confusion, convulsions, cardiac arrest, circulatory and respiratory failure, coma and in extreme cases death.