Pyrrolizidine alkaloids

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Pyrrolizidine alkaloids exhibit low toxicity in their native state but are metabolized into carcinogenic, teratogenic, and mutagenic compounds within human or animal organisms. The specific structure of these metabolites is crucial for understanding their toxic potential. Accurate structural knowledge is essential for evaluating each alkaloid's toxicity. X-ray structure analysis is the ideal method for elucidating these structures and determining bond lengths that influence metabolic processes. This work discusses the incidence and mechanisms of intoxication, as well as how these substances enter the organism. It also presents the three-dimensional structures of compounds analyzed by X-ray methods to date and explores structure-toxicity relationships. The book provides insights into the occurrence and progression of toxification, highlighting the importance of structural analysis in understanding the toxic effects of pyrrolizidine alkaloids.