09/2014

The CCHF has partnered with the Atlanta Botanical Gardens and the Atlanta Science Tavern to put together a series of talks for the wider public about how plants impact human health.

In September Prof. Simon Blakey from Emory University presented a talk entitled “Remedy, Drug, or Deadly Poison? Extracts from Strychnos shrubs around the world”.

Attendees were given a historical perspective of the significance of the strychnine and malagashanine molecules and found out how the specific chemical structures impact the biological activity of these Natural Products.

Audience members had the opportunity to find out more about the structure of these very similar compounds by picking up 3D-printed models of malagashanine and strychnine and explore the stereochemistry of these compounds.