ABSTRACT
As millions of patients around the world inhale precisely metered quantities of antimuscarinic bronchodilator for relief of severe airflow obstruction, few would suspect that this modern and effective medication can trace its ancestry across centuries to the magical potions of Homeric legend. Crude botanical preparations of the deadly nightshade family (Solanaceae) have been used for millennia in cultures around the world. For most of their history, we have a record of these plant products being ingested deliberately or administered surreptitiously for their hallucinogenic and sometimes toxic properties.
