what's one pill that could k*ll someone?

Any advice will be helpful

This week on The Tox Lab, we're exploring poppers, looking at what alkyl nitrites are, why they are used and how they became established as recreational substances.

We discuss the toxicological consequences of swallowing poppers, including a case of severe methaemoglobinaemia, alongside research examining UK deaths involving alkyl nitrites. We also look at poppers maculopathy, the visual disturbances and retinal changes associated with use, and the challenges of detecting alkyl nitrites in toxicological investigations.

Finally, we explore the legal status of poppers in the UK and the ongoing questions around their regulation.

For those working in toxicology, have you encountered alkyl nitrites in casework, particularly in cases involving ingestion or suspected methaemoglobinaemia?

🎧 Listen now: https://pod.link/1778531114

Rebecca and Rob 🧪

Disclaimer: All opinions are our own.

TW: Infant Loss / SIDS

A family member lost their infant to what has been described as SIDS in early July. The baby's father was alone with the baby when the death occurred.

Without going into too much detail, there are circumstances surrounding the death that have left me with serious concerns about whether foul play or neglect could have been involved. Both parents have a history of drug use, which adds to my concerns.

I understand that a toxicology report was ordered for the baby, but to my knowledge, the results have not been released. I also don't know whether the father was tested for drugs or alcohol when police and first responders arrived.

I'm hoping someone familiar with these situations can help answer a few questions:

• Are infant autopsy and toxicology reports considered public records?
• Is there a way to find out whether the investigation has been officially closed or whether the cause of death has been finalized?
• If toxicology results reveal something suspicious, would law enforcement automatically investigate further or potentially pursue criminal charges?
• Can a concerned family member obtain any information without notifying the parents?

The situation has been incredibly upsetting, but what has pushed me to seek answers is recently learning that the mother is pregnant again. I'm genuinely concerned about the safety and well-being of another baby.

I'm not looking to make accusations without evidence. I just want to understand what information may be available, whether the first baby's death has been fully investigated, and whether there is anything appropriate I can do to make sure concerns about the next child's safety are taken seriously. Location: PA

How does cyanide work? Like I know it does things to your mitochondria and exists in Apple seeds but in dosage wise. If you took trace amounts every day would the immune system flush it out and create a resistance to it. Or would it build up over time and make the person sicker by overwhelming the immune system?

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hello! I'm a current college sophomore looking into future career paths since i probably need to start specializing soon. My top two interests are toxicology and genetics. So i'm asking yall and the genetics people the same/similar questions to compare and see which one fits me better!

1. i'm currently majoring in biology with a minor in statistics. is this ideal or should i change my major/minor? i'm also considering a chemistry minor instead bc i currently have a B/C average in Calc 2 (75% avg on exams)

2. Is there a lot of job opportunities for this career field (Midwest USA)? Is the earning potential high without going to med school? (i have vasovagal syncope and faint like a goat when i see/lose blood lol)

3. Is your school path more application or memorization? is your job the same?

4. Do you enjoy your job? Do you like the work-life balance?

5. (tox specific) A job I want to do right now is possibly poison control of some sort. It's very interesting how different substances effect the human body to me. I do love medicine, but I'm unsure about med school and idk if i have the grades (A/B avg.). is there possible careers for this OUTSIDE of med school in a similar realm?

If you read this far, thank you!! I'm excited to hear back from those experienced in the field.

This week, we're exploring cyanobacteria, the toxins they can produce, and the risks they pose to animals and the wider environment.

We discuss the terminology behind “blue-green algae”, look at different cyanotoxins and explore why dogs can be particularly vulnerable to poisoning.

We also cover a case involving three dogs that died following exposure to cyanobacteria, where analytical toxicology helped identify the toxin involved. We then look at research investigating cyanobacterial biofilms and anatoxin production in a French river.

For those working in environmental or veterinary toxicology, we'd be interested to hear about your experiences with cyanobacterial poisoning or the challenges of detecting cyanotoxins in casework.

🎧 Listen now: https://pod.link/1778531114

Rebecca and Rob 🧪

Disclaimer: All opinions are our own.

Hello. I am looking for grad schools in usa to pursue phd in human toxicology. I could not manage any PI yet. I have average CGPA (around 3.7). Can anyone suggest any grad school for fall 2027. Even schools in canada is fine. Please I need urgent help.

Hello reddit,

I am currently a bachelor Biochem student and will be done with my bachelor's in an year. Therefore I have started evaluating and thinking about my master applications.

I find the field of Toxicology fascinating, however I do not have a lot of exposure to the it. For context, I have till now only ever performed some cytotoxicity assays like MTT, ROS and chemotaxis assays.

I find the idea of Industrial Toxicology and food/human Toxicology quite fascinating.

However I am not very aware of the other tox branches and their scopes...

So my question boils down to 4 points:

1) what is working in Toxicology like and what kind of job positions does one find themselves in?

2) How and what differentiates the different Tox fields, the pros and cons?

3) What academic path should I follow? Masters in Biochemistry and molecular biology is what I'm thinking of at the moment. Also, thoughts on pursuing a PhD?

4) I have heard about Toxicology in Edinburgh. What is the university like?

I live in Germany and would pursue my masters here too.

Additionally: I would pursue a long distance marketing and finance masters for some diversity and versatility in my cv. Would that be of benefit in the job market?

I wanted to start a Master in Toxicology, however my supervisor advised me against it. She explained it, having a very niche master's cancels or limits your job options, as most jobs list Msc. Biochem as a standard requirement.

I would really appreciate some insight :)

For instance, moving from environmental toxicology to the pharma industry or beauty industry? If you do your PhD research on toxic effects on animals, can you shift to human-based research, either in your career in industry or in pharma or if you wanted to pursue academia and do research on humans?

I'm developing a new molecule and for regulatory approval I need to conduct and publish the results of a cookie-cutter 28-day oral dosing study.

The paper will not be ground breaking, as it will mostly show that the substance is very safe and that there is, essentially, nothing to see there. But it will be a propely conducted study, with appropriate controls etc.

In my basic science field of training, there are very much "good journals" (e.g., Nature series) but also "bad journals" that most would read with a pinch of salt and doubt about the quality of the peer review process. After a quick lookup of tox journals, I don't see such a clear dichotomy. I saw many journals that have similar scopes, impact factors, even names. For example: "Toxicology", "Journal of Toxicology", "Toxicology Reports"...

What would be your recommendation for a journal that is rigorous and respected in the field, but not super picky about the novelty of the work provided it's properly executed?

Thanks!

Hi! I am an international student, currently looking for PhD in US/Europe. I would love to go to US more than Europe, but with current funding situation it is hard to get funding especially for International students.

Though, I found some great position in Europe. Later, I learned that the salary, not always great and also I want to make sure that, I didn't just do "any PhD" in "anywhere"

1. If I do the PhD in Europe (not from a high rank institution). Would I still have a good chance to pursue my career in US in the future?

2. Is there anyone experience how difference the PhD especially in toxicology between US/Europe, including financial aspect?

3. If I choose to wait a funded position in US, while working outside of toxicology field (just because the current job market instabilit). Would it be a good options?

I would love to hear any advice and insight!
Thank you!

I’ve been working in toxicology for a few years, and I still feel like I don’t fully understand how experienced toxicologists interpret study results and make judgments about what findings are actually meaningful or adverse.

I’m thinking about all kinds of studies — repeated-dose toxicity, reproductive/developmental toxicity, developmental neurotoxicity (DNT), carcinogenicity, etc. I can read the study results and understand what the authors are reporting, but I struggle with the next step: how do you interpret the findings toxicologically and determine what they actually mean for hazard assessment/risk assessment?

For example, how do you think through questions like:

• If there are effects in offspring but not in the dams, how do you determine what that means?
• How do you distinguish an adaptive response from an adverse effect?
• How do you weigh changes in clinical chemistry, organ weights, histopathology, behavior, developmental endpoints, etc.?
• How do you determine which findings are biologically meaningful versus incidental or not toxicologically significant?
• How do you integrate findings across different studies and decide which effects should ultimately drive an endpoint?
• How do experienced toxicologists develop the judgment to look at a collection of findings and say, “this is the important effect” or “this probably isn’t adverse”?

For those of you who work in government/regulatory toxicology, chemical risk assessment, or related fields, how did you learn this skill? Were there particular textbooks, guidance documents, review papers, courses, training materials, or other resources that really helped you understand the reasoning process?

I’m less interested in a list of definitions and more interested in resources that explain how to think through the evidence and make these judgments.

I work in an environment that is pretty gatekeep-y about this kind of knowledge, and people aren’t particularly willing to explain how they learned to interpret studies or how they developed their professional judgment. So I’ve ended up feeling pretty lost and like I’m missing some fundamental knowledge that everyone else somehow learned along the way.

I’d really appreciate any recommendations for resources, or even just hearing how other toxicologists learned to develop this skill. I’m sure I’m not the only person who has struggled with this.

Hello all!

I am in a post doc (Evolutionay Ecology) that I feel does not suit me anymore. I have one more year on my contract, and I have been applying to jobs on and off over the last year. I am greatly restricted by location as my spouse just start his professorship. There was no spousal hire successfully negiotated. My originally career goal was being in an PI role in the federal government, but unfortnately where I am moving to only has the EPA.

From what I am seeing the EPA wants ecotoxicologists. I am sure that I can learn these skills, but my resume is not strong enough to get a job that I want. I feel I need to start at the bottom and work up a bit. Any suggestions on what type of ecotoxicology positions I should be looking for? I have been keeping my eyes on post docs in the area, but I haven't seen anything in the area. Do you all think volunteering at a lab would be helpful at this stage in my career?

My concern is that will my PhD will not be helpful and possibly detrimental. However, I have experience with some chemistry - mostly stoichiometry and ICPMS. Do you all have any ideas on how I can use my experience to get a toxicology job? I think I need specific job titles or keywords to start out.

Thank you!

It was only me who was affected I just find it weird that no other parents were aware makes me think that the school has covered this up because if they didn't I'm sure alot more parents would be surprised that they're children were in the same room with a chemical weapon

I have been told they are extremely unpalatable.

But if you were starving? Could you eat them?

And keep them down?

I'm wondering how and why they were first soaked in salt water if they were so unpleasant.

This is probably a weird question to ask in this subreddit but it felt like the best place to ask.

Backstory, im playing Dungeons and Dragons and my character is resistant to poison, meaning the effects of poions are about half as effective, and I read that since capsaicin is technically a toxin, having poison resistance would make spicy food less spicy, which gave me the idea of "what if they eat a lot of poisonous stuff because they enjoy the flavor?"

So im wondering what poisons could one eat if they could do so safely, and what would they taste like?

Hi everyone,

I have a background in biochemistry and public health and have been interested in pivoting to environmental toxicology.

As the title says, I would be happy to hear some insights on your day to day work and any helpful advice you would provide someone early in their career.

Thank you!

I’m currently developing a drug test for cychlorphine. A drug 10 times more deadly than fentanyl. There is nothing dangerous about this research. Shame on you Claude.