Talk:Neurotoxin

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Please see my discussion on the Category talk:Neurotoxins page. --Chinasaur

[edit] Merge

why isn't neurotoxin and neurotoxicity the same article. I have no say in whether they are combined or not, but it seens they are kind of the same. jess523s

• Disagree- They are two different things.--Super7am 23:32, 25 August 2006 (UTC)
• Agree - neurotoxic (neurotoxicity) should be fused into this article. Poisonous redirects to poison. It would also create one complete article since the information now is minimal. --Surreal 13:51, 11 January 2006 (UTC)
• Agree - They are both too similar to merit seperate articles. Just for the record, everyone has an equal say in matters such as this mastodon 22:40, 7 May 2006 (UTC)
• Agree-Each of these articles are too small as it is, and merging them would create a more comprehensive article. --Kahlfin 19:25, 8 May 2006 (UTC)
• Agree- These articles need some expansion to be worthwhile - it would be better just to consolidate them into the same one. Gkeeling 20:03, 25 May 2006 (UTC)
• Disagree The concepts are related, but distinct--neurotoxins certainly cause neurotoxicity, but not all neurotoxicity is a result of the actions of neurotoxins. For example, abnormally high levels of endogenous neurotransmitters can have a neurotoxic effect, or metabolic disorders that cause hypoxia...I'm very busy right now, but I can try to expand these articles in the next week or two. -- Scientizzle 18:41, 15 June 2006 (UTC)
• Disagree I concur with the previous statement. When I think of neurotoxicity, I see a separate and expansive realm of science involving endogenous factors such as excitotoxicity that in some circumstances may be caused by a neurotoxin but are certainly not exlusive to neurotoxins. Oligodendrocyte 16:22, 7 July 2006 (UTC)
• Weak Agree - I disagree with the above statement on the grounds of common material. Besides the issue of excitotoxicity and other endogenous factors, it seems like most material appearing in one of the articles would appear in the other. Perhaps neurotoxin should be a section within neurotoxicity.Leon... 07:06, 9 July 2006 (UTC)
• Agree - The two articles are similar it many respects and the merger would improve the quality of both as neurotoxicity can easily be sen as an aspect of neurotoxins
• Disagree If accurate, these should be two distinct categories, neurotoxin referring to a compound that causes an (adverse) effect, neurotoxicity refering to the principles and mechanisms of action of such compounds. Thomas Thoma837 (talk • contribs)
• DisagreeThey are two different things.Biophys 04:54, 20 January 2007 (UTC)
• DISAGREEthey are different words so they have diferent words they shouldnt be combined.—The preceding unsigned comment was added by 71.153.170.194 (talk • contribs).

The merge proposal tag was removed today for no consensus. -- Scientizzle 03:06, 26 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] A "toxin" != a poison.

I don't know whether the term "toxin" in english toxicology can be applied to all kinds of poisons; in german toxicology, for instance, "toxin" reffers only to a biogenic (i.e. produced by an organism) poison. It is not correct to label e.g. neurotoxic heavy metals or organophosphates as "neurotoxins", since they are of mineral or synthetic origin. A typical neurotoxin is tetrodotoxin or strychnine, but not lead, mercury or Sarin. Could some english-native-speaking toxicologist clarify, whether it is right to mark all neurotoxic substances as "neurotoxins", please?--84.163.95.165 18:26, 21 March 2007 (UTC)

The article on toxins is stating the same, along with mention, that the term "toxin" is generously used by general public, or media as a synonyme to all toxic substances or even toxicity as such. I see the problem, that for non-professionals, the term "toxin" is completely interchangeable with "poison", and many articles on synthetic neurotoxic poisons are describing them as "neurotoxins" (example: Tetramethylenedisulfotetramine, a synthetic condensation product of sulfamide and methanal, which is a potent convulsant), but I think that it would be appropriate to reformulate following part of this article:

"Toxins ingested from the environment are described as exogenous and include gases (such as carbon monoxide), metals (such as mercury), liquids (ethanol) and an endless list of solids. When exogenous toxins are ingested, the effect on neurons is largely dependent on dosage. Thus, ethanol (alcohol) is inebriating in low doses, only producing mild neurotoxicity. Prolonged exposure to "safe" alcohol levels slowly weakens and kills neurons."

and (maybe, with the exception of ethanol, as it can be of biogenic origin) to distinguish them from proper neurotoxins, which are discussed in the rest of the article.

Parallelly, an article dealing with neurotoxic substances should be created, or incorporated into the main article Poison, same goes for haemotoxic, cardiotoxic, cytotoxic and otherwise poisonous compounds. A lot of work, yes, but Wiki should be an encyclopedia...--84.163.109.68 23:10, 22 March 2007 (UTC)