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prettygoodwordergotism (UR-guh-tiz-uhm) - n., a condition, characterized by cramps, spasms, and a form of gangrene, caused by eating rye or other cereal that is infected with ergot fungus.
Also called St. Anthony's fire, from the tradition of praying to St. Anthony the Great for relief from several skin conditions, including ergotism and shingles, in part because monks (who often relied on rye as a staple) were often especially susceptible, and St. Anthony was considered the founder of Christian monasticism. The fungus Claviceps purpurea grows in the seed heads of rye and closely related grains, especially after cold winters followed by damp springs, and contains a family of alkaloids called ergolines. The connection between the fungus, the toxins, and the disease was untangled around 1840, though word ergot itself came into English in the 1650s, taking the French name for it, from Old French argot, cock's spur, from the distorted shape of infected rye heads.
---L.
Also called St. Anthony's fire, from the tradition of praying to St. Anthony the Great for relief from several skin conditions, including ergotism and shingles, in part because monks (who often relied on rye as a staple) were often especially susceptible, and St. Anthony was considered the founder of Christian monasticism. The fungus Claviceps purpurea grows in the seed heads of rye and closely related grains, especially after cold winters followed by damp springs, and contains a family of alkaloids called ergolines. The connection between the fungus, the toxins, and the disease was untangled around 1840, though word ergot itself came into English in the 1650s, taking the French name for it, from Old French argot, cock's spur, from the distorted shape of infected rye heads.
---L.
