LOGANIACEAE STRYCHNIN 687 



It contains the glucoside loganin C 03 H 34 O 14 especially in the pulp. The 

 S. toxifera of the Orinoco, used as an arrow poison and called "curarie," or 

 curare, is obtained from the stripped bark, which is steeped in water. It con- 

 tains the alkaloid curarin C tQ H -N,O. Other alkaloids found in curare are 



1 y o J 



protocurin C 00 H,, 3 NO 3 which is poisonous, tubocinarin C 19 H 01 NO 4 and curin 

 C 18 H 17 NO 3 . The dried seeds of S. potatorum are used for clearing water. The 

 Tieute of Java is a strong poison causing tonic and clonic convulsions and there 

 is no known antidote. It is used as an arrow poison. S. Crevau.riana of French 

 Guiana is used as a curare poison. 



Dr. Winslow describes the toxicological effect of strychnin on a dog as 

 follows : 



One-twentieth of a grain of strychnin nitrate, injected subcutaneously by the writer into a 

 dog weighing 25 Ibs., caused uneasiness and excitement, with protrusion of the eye-balls, and 

 in the space of ten minutes, tetanic convulsions. The breathing was shallow and almost im- 

 perceptible, the pulse rapid and irregular, the lips were covered with foam, the tail was stiff 

 and extended, the ears laid back, and there was general muscular rigidity, the animal lying 

 on his side in a state of opisthotonos. This condition lasted about three minutes, and was 

 followed by a period of relaxation. But the slightest noise or irritation of the skin brought 

 on convulsions. The convulsions became less frequent and violent, and ceased altogether 

 within half an hour. The same animal was given gr. 1-40 of the alkaloid on the following day, 

 but without producing any appreciable result. One-tenth of a grain, given on another day and 

 in the same manner, caused immediate uneasiness and restlessness, and in ten minutes induced 

 a severe convulsion, lasting for three minutes, in which the animal was so rigid that he could 

 be lifted bodily without bending. The ears were drawn back, the limbs were extended and 

 stiff, the tail was straight and rigid, and there was twitching of the muscles of the jaw and 

 limbs. The corners of the mouth were drawn back (risus sardonicus), the mouth was covered 

 with foam, and there was some trismus. The breathing was nearly suppressed, owing to 

 tetanic spasm of the respiratory muscles. Following this convulsion, the jaw dropped, the 

 muscles relaxed and another attack could not be produced by noises or external irritation. 

 Some twitching of the temporal muscles persisted. Evidently the second stage of poisoning 

 had ensued, and the motor nerves and cells of the inferior cormia had become paralyzed. Death 

 occurred in general paralysis within half an hour, and without any recurrence of convulsions 

 or tetanic condition. Death takes place more commonly in strychnin poisoning from asphyxia, 

 during a convulsion, and is caused by spasm of the respiratory muscles, or, more rarely, by 

 spasm of the glottis. Sometimes a fatal result ensues from exhaustion, between the paroxyms. 

 and occasionally death appears to follow the intense action on the nervous system, and de- 

 pression of the heart. 



The lethal dose for dogs has been set at gr. 1-6 gr. 1-3 (Kaufmann). This is much too 

 large, as evidenced by the experiment mentioned above. The fatal amount varies greatly in 

 accordance with the weight of the animal; probably less than gr. 1-20 would kill toy terriers, 

 and cases are reported where they have been destroyed by gr. 1-60 of the alkaloid. The ther- 

 apeutic dose should, therefore, be proportioned, as advised, to the weight of the animal. Five 

 to eight grains of nux vomica will kill a dog. 



animals must be increased forty-fold by changes in diet. It was found that diet causes dis- 

 tinct, but not very marked, differences in resistance to morphin. The experiments further 

 show that foods such as enter largely into the daily diet of man have most pronounced effect 

 upon resistance of animals to several poisons. They produce changes in metabolism but are 

 not readily detectable by means ordinarily used in metabolism studies. Diet causes distinct 

 but not very marked differences in resistance to morphin. It was found by Hunt that the 

 effect of oatmeal diet in increasing the resistance of certain animals to acetonitrile is probably 

 due in part to a specific effect of the diet upon the thyroid gland. The poisonous action of 

 acetonitrile, according to Hunt, is largely due to the formation of hydrocyanic acid from it. 

 This is the view expressed not only by Dr. Hunt, but also by Heymans and Masoin. 



In the paper by Dr. Hunt referred to above, a statement is taken from the work of Mans- 

 field that starving rabbits are much more susceptible to chloralhydrate, paralehyde, and mor- 

 phin than well nourished ones. Lewin stated that starving animals are more resistant to 

 quinin, atropin, and nicotin, than well nourished ones. Salant and Rieger found the resist- 

 ance of rabbits to caffein to be diminished when the animals were starving for four or five 

 days. The fatal dose was about 30 percent less than in well fed rabbits. In this connection it 

 is also of interest to state that Hunt found that season has an important effect upon the re- 

 sistance of animals to certain poisons. In some cases these effects seem to depend upon sea- 

 sonable variations in the activity of the thyroid. 



Foster, who experimented with dogs and ricin, found that when dogs were kept upon a 

 high protein nutrition all died from 1 mgm. ricin per kilo, and of three kept on medium low 

 plane of protein nutrition, two survived this dose. 



