TOXICOLOGY

TOXICOLOGY

• Toxicology—the study of the adverse effects of chemicals or physical agents on living organisms
• Types: Environmental—air, water, soil Consumer—foods, cosmetics, drugs Medical, clinical, forensic

Forensic Toxicology

• Postmortem—medical examiner or coroner
• Criminal—motor vehicle accidents (MVA)
• Workplace—drug testing
• Sports—human and animal
• Environment—industrial, catastrophic, terrorism

Aspects of Toxicity

• Dosage
• Form of substance
• Mode of entry
• Physical conditions of victim
• Time of exposure

LETHAL DOSE

• LD50: dose that kills half of population

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PROVE A CASE

• Motive
• Intent
• Access to poison
• Access to victim
• Death caused by poison

HUAMN SPECIMEN ANALYSIS

• Blood & Urine
• Eyes & Bile
• Gastric Content & Liver Tissue
• Brain Tissue & Kidney Tissue
• Hair & Nails

BLOOD ALCOHOL CONTENT

• Legal limit: 0.08
• Influenced by:
• Body weight & Alcohol content
• Number consumed
• Time since consumption

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