Natural toxins are harmful substances produced by living organisms, including plants, fungi, algae, bacteria, and animals, that can damage the health of humans and other animals when ingested, inhaled, or otherwise encountered. Unlike synthetic pollutants, these compounds arise as part of an organism's biology, ofte…
Natural toxins are harmful substances produced by living organisms, including plants, fungi, algae, bacteria, and animals, that can damage the health of humans and other animals when ingested, inhaled, or otherwise encountered. Unlike synthetic pollutants, these compounds arise as part of an organism's biology, often serving defensive or competitive functions, yet they can contaminate food and water or accumulate through ecological food webs. Their impacts range from mild irritation and allergic responses to serious organ damage, depending on the toxin, the dose, and the exposed organism. Examples include mycotoxins from molds, toxins produced during harmful algal blooms, and a range of plant-derived defensive chemicals. Within Plant and Animal Ecology, natural toxins and their impacts relate to the journal's interest in the chemical interactions between organisms and their environments, and in how such substances move through ecosystems and affect the species that inhabit them. Studying these toxins helps clarify defensive strategies in nature, routes of contamination, and the biochemical and physiological effects of exposure on exposed organisms. This page gathers peer-reviewed, open-access research relevant to natural toxins and their ecological and biological consequences.
1 peer-reviewed article, ranked by relevance. Each links to its DOI.
The 1 article above has been cited 16 times in the scholarly literature. Citation data via OpenAlex and Crossref, updated Jun 2026.
A sample of recent works citing this journal's research on Natural Toxins and Their Impacts, linking to each citing work.