Nothing Special   »   [go: up one dir, main page]
Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 6 views

    Digitalis Purpurea Foxglove

    Uploaded by

    luizasilveirat
    Purpura

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Digitalis Purpurea Foxglove

    Uploaded by

    luizasilveirat
    6 views3 pages
    Purpura

    Original Title

    Digitalis-purpurea-Foxglove

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    Purpura

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    6 views3 pages

    Digitalis Purpurea Foxglove

    Uploaded by

    luizasilveirat
    Purpura

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    You are on page 1of 3

    Foxglove

    Digitalis purpurea
    Legendary in medicine,
    infamous in murder
    mysteries, useful in
    molecular science and
    making a name for itself in
    genetics!
    Foxgloves, Digitalis purpurea, are biennial
    or short-lived perennial herbs ever popular
    worldwide as garden plants. They come from
    temperate broadleaf and mixed forests,
    woodlands and scrublands of Europe and the
    Mediterranean.
    All parts of Digitalis purpurea are
    poisonous. They contain two chemically similar toxins, cardiac glycosides digitoxin
    and digoxin, that can be extracted from the leaves to produce medication which when
    used at exactly the correct dose, can strengthen and regulate the heartbeat. However,
    dosage needs to be extremely accurate as an excessive dosage can be fatal.
    The use of Digitalis in herbal remedies can be traced
    back to Roman times but in 1785, English physician
    and herbalist, William Withering published what is
    believed to be the first known clinical study
    investigating Digitalis to treat dropsy, a general term
    used at the time to describe leg swelling, which can be
    a sign of heart failure. Digoxin is still being used in
    medicine to treat heart failure and some rhythm
    disturbances, but is extracted from leaves of another
    species, Digitalis lanata. In recent times other drugs,
    Natural distribution of Digitalis like synthetic beta blockers, have mostly replaced
    purpurea in Europe.
    digoxin because they are safer to use and are associated
    with better longer-term outcomes. The steroid digoxigenin, also extracted from
    foxgloves, has a further application as a small molecule marker (immmunotag) that can
    be used to visualise a variety of molecules for research or use in diagnostic assays.
    Four phenotypes of Digitalis. Mateus S. Figueiredo, CC BY-SA 3.0
    <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

    M/_ ; W/_ ; _/_ white flower, purple spots


    m/m; _/_ ; _/_ albino flower, yellow spots
    M/_ ; w/w ; d/d light purple flower
    M/_ ; w/w ; D/_ dark purple flower

    Flower colour in Digitalis purpurea is determined by the interaction of at least


    three genes, M, D and W. The purple pigment, an anthocyanin, is determined by the
    dominant allele of the M gene. A dominant D allele
    enhances the M gene, so the purple colour becomes
    more intense. Remarkably, pigment is deposited in
    spots if the W allele is expressed.
    Detective writer Agatha Christie is purported
    to have said “Give me a decent bottle of poison and
    I’ll construct the perfect crime.” Digitalis from
    foxglove leaves was one of many plant-based
    poisons used to despatch victims in her many books
    and short stories.
    The Herb of Death, published as a short story
    in 1930 in The Story-Teller Magazine, has foxglove
    leaves mixed with sage leaves stuffed in a roast
    duck. All guests fall ill, but one dies from Digitalis
    poisoning!
    More recently, James Bond falls victim
    to poisoning in Casino Royale. During
    a game of poker, Bond is poisoned by
    Digitalis, and is only saved from
    certain death at the very last minute.

    Alison Downing, Brian Atwell, Ben Marais, Karen Marais, Kevin


    Downing
    School of Natural Sciences
    Jacobs M S. 1936. The history of Digitalis therapy. Annals of Medical History Vol. 8: 492-499.
    Leasney M S. Flowers for the heart. Modern Drug Discovery.
    http://pubsapp.acs.org/subscribe/archive/mdd/v05/i03/html/03timeline.html?
    McLachlan A. 2016. The heart medicine that may have given us Van Gogh’s Starry Night.
    https://www.sydney.edu.au/news-opinion/news/2016/05/26/the-heart-medicine-that-may-have-given-us-van-
    goghs-starry-night.html
    Snyder K.2008. Digitalis purpurea.
    http://pbio209.pbworks.com/w/page/11342445/Snyder,%20K%20-%20Digitalis%20purpurea
    Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digitalis
    Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digitalis_purpurea
    Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digitalis_lanata

    You might also like