chemistry

Toxin and Toxin-Target Database

Toxin and Toxin-Target Database is a chemistry topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Toxin and Toxin-Target Database rather than just read about it. In short: The Toxin and Toxin-Target Database (T3DB), also known as the Toxic Exposome Database, is a freely accessible online database of common substances that are toxic to humans, along with their protein, DNA or organ targets. The database currently houses nearly 3,700 toxic compounds or poisons described by nearly 42,000 synonyms.

Key takeaways

Toxin and Toxin-Target Database belongs to chemistry; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Toxin and Toxin-Target Database to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Toxin and Toxin-Target Database from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Toxin and Toxin-Target Database (T3DB), also known as the Toxic Exposome Database, is a freely accessible online database of common substances that are toxic to humans, along with their protein, DNA or organ targets. The database currently houses nearly 3,700 toxic compounds or poisons described by nearly 42,000 synonyms. This list includes various groups of toxins, including common pollutants, pesticides, drugs, food toxins, household and industrial/workplace toxins, cigarette toxins, and uremic toxins. These toxic substances are linked to 2,086 corresponding protein/DNA target records. In total there are 42,433 toxic substance-toxin target associations. Each toxic compound record (ToxCard) in T3DB contains nearly 100 data fields and holds information such as chemical properties and descriptors, mechanisms of action, toxicity or lethal dose values, molecular and cellular interactions, medical (symptom and treatment) information (Fig. 1–3), NMR an MS spectra, and up- and down-regulated genes. This information has been extracted from over 18,000 sources, which include other databases, government documents, books, and scientific literature. The primary focus of the T3DB is on providing mechanisms of toxicity and identifying target proteins for common toxic substances. While a number of other toxic compound databases do exist, their emphasis is on covering large numbers of chemical compounds that are almost never seen outside a chemical laboratory. T3DB attempts to capture data on only those toxic substances that are abundant or in widespread use and have been detected or measured in humans. T3DB is fully searchable and supports extensive text, sequence, chemical structure, relational query and spectral searches. It is both modelled after and closely linked to the Human Metabolome Database (HMDB) and DrugBank. Potential applications of T3DB include metabolomics and environmental exposure studies, toxic compound metabolism prediction, toxin/drug interaction prediction, and general toxic substance awareness.

Scope and access All data in T3DB is non-proprietary or is derived from a non-proprietary source. It is freely accessible and available to anyone. In addition, nearly every data item is fully traceable and explicitly referenced to the original source. T3DB data is available through a public web interface and downloads.

See also Poison Toxin List of extremely hazardous substances List of biological databases KEGG HMDB SMPDB

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Toxin and Toxin-Target Database

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Toxin and Toxin-Target Database claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In chemistry, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Toxin and Toxin-Target Database before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Toxin and Toxin-Target Database ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Toxin and Toxin-Target Database

In research: Toxin and Toxin-Target Database appears in chemistry research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Toxin and Toxin-Target Database in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Toxin and Toxin-Target Database is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Biochemistry databases, Metabolomic databases, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Toxin and Toxin-Target Database outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Toxin and Toxin-Target Database in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Toxin and Toxin-Target Database means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Toxin and Toxin-Target Database out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Toxin and Toxin-Target Database in simple terms?

Why does Toxin and Toxin-Target Database matter?

Because it connects several chemistry ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Toxin and Toxin-Target Database?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Toxin and Toxin-Target Database.