JL
><<  Other fruit pits also contain cyanogenic glycosides and are hazardous to
>ingest in large quantities. >>

Liza:
>This question was raised on the other list a few wks ago. It was said that
>these compounds have a different shape than the cyanide that is a poison, and
>are harmless. Do you happen to have handy pictures of the molecules? Or
>information to the contrary?

Hydrogen cyanide has the formula HCN, which is pretty simple. The molecule (with
3 atoms) has only one form (linear).

HCN is the active ingredient is Zyklon B (and is a poison).

Apricot kernels don't contain HCN, but its cyanogenic glycosides *release* HCN
when in contact with the stomach acids. Amounts of HCN have released have been
analyzed, and poisonings have been reported (of course, large quantities of
kernels has to be eaten).

P.S. to Stefan:
> I think that our ancestors were nomads.

Yes, but if they behaved like current hunter-gatherers like Bushmen, they moved
only a few miles every few years, and rotated locations in the same environment.
Of course, not all of them did that, otherwise we would still be in Africa, but
I don't think they moved so fast that they could discover new foods every
year...

Best wishes,

Jean-Louis
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