Polonium in Tobacco and Doses to Humans. Appendix V

Tobacco (Nicotina rustica) is in the Solonaceae family, together with bell pepper (capsicum), tomato and potato, and there are many species in the tobacco genus, Nicotiana. It was originally grown as a crop in Central America and is named after the Caribbean island of Tobago. Most tobacco is smoked, but other forms exist, such as snuff and chewing tobacco. Nicotine, the active substance in tobacco, is present in lower doses in potato plants, tomato plants and, together with cocaine, in coca plants. It is named after a French ambassador to Portugal, Jean Nicot, who introduced snuff, taken through the nose, to the French court in 1560.