Consider these 2 examples:
Cyclophosphmide was a WWII developed from a chemical weapon, commonly known as mustard gas.. today, it is a standard use chemotherapeutic drug for most cancers.
Atropine, a poison famous in the ancient world from the Deadly Nightshade (Belladona atropa).. is used today as an antidote to organophosphate (nerve gas) poisoning and for the treatment of ocular pathologies such as glaucoma.
It brings a new dimension to "poison" and "cure".. its as if saying in terms of pharmacology- there's no drug or compound that is absolutely good or absolutely bad.. it is the dose and the concentration determines whether the outcome is physiologically favourable or not. Effectively dismissing the assignment of poison and cure (probably too much moral baggage to put onto molecules).. and saying that it is all relative. An overdose of cyclophosphamide is probably just like mustard gas poisoning, it will kill. An overdose of atropine, and you will probably die convulsing to death.. so the right dose and right usage can potentially make it a cure..
Doesn it make u think about how we can then use other things we call "poisons" as potential therapeutics? we just need to figure out how to and how much..
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