Ligabue-Braun Rodrigo, Carlini Célia Regina
Centro de Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves 9500, Prédio 43431, Sala 214, 91501-970 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
Centro de Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves 9500, Prédio 43431, Sala 214, 91501-970 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Instituto do Cérebro (InsCer), Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 6690, 90610-000 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
Toxicon. 2015 Jun 1;99:102-8. doi: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2015.03.020. Epub 2015 Mar 31.
Until very recently, toxicity was not considered a trait observed in birds, but works published in the last two decades started to shed light on this subject. Poisonous birds are rare (or little studied), and comprise Pitohui and Ifrita birds from Papua New Guinea, the European quail, the Spoor-winged goose, the Hoopees, the North American Ruffed grouse, the Bronzewings, and the Red warbler. A hundred more species are considered unpalatable or malodorous to humans and other animals. The present review intends to present the current understanding of bird toxicity, possibly pointing to an ignored research field. Whenever possible, biochemical characteristics of these poisons and their effects on humans and other animals are discussed, along with historical aspects of poison discovery and evolutionary hypothesis regarding their function.
直到最近，毒性都未被视为鸟类所具有的一种特性，但过去二十年发表的研究开始揭示这一主题。有毒鸟类很罕见（或鲜少被研究），包括来自巴布亚新几内亚的黑头林鵙鹟和艾氏林鵙鹟、欧洲鹌鹑、距翅雁、戴胜、北美披肩榛鸡、铜翅鸠以及红胁绿莺。还有一百多种鸟类被认为对人类和其他动物而言味道不佳或气味难闻。本综述旨在呈现当前对鸟类毒性的理解，可能会指出一个被忽视的研究领域。只要有可能，我们会讨论这些毒素的生化特性及其对人类和其他动物的影响，以及毒素发现的历史背景和关于其功能的进化假说。
