Ichthyothereol is a toxic polyyne compound found in the leaves and flowers of several plants in South and

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

. These plant sources and their extracts are known for their toxic effects on fish, and have long been used by various native tribes in the lower Amazon basin for fishing. The name of the genus ''

Ichthyothere ''Ichthyothere'' is a genus of flowering plants, found in parts of South America (the Amazon) and Central America. The name ''ichthyothere'' literally translates as ''fish poison''. These plants' active constituent is a chemical called ichthyot ...

'', the members of which contain noticeable amounts of the natural product in their leaves, literally translates as ''fish poison.'' It is so toxic, fish will jump out of the water if ''Ichthyothere terminalis'' leaves are used as bait. This chemical is also found in the leaves and flowers of '' Dahlia coccinea''. The actual chemical was isolated by several different groups and its full

chemical structure A chemical structure determination includes a chemist's specifying the molecular geometry and, when feasible and necessary, the electronic structure of the target molecule or other solid. Molecular geometry refers to the spatial arrangement of ...

determined in 1965. The first

total synthesis Total synthesis is the complete chemical synthesis of a complex molecule, often a natural product, from simple, commercially-available precursors. It usually refers to a process not involving the aid of biological processes, which distinguishes i ...

was published in 2001. It is also toxic to mice and dogs, producing

convulsant A convulsant is a drug which induces convulsions and/or epileptic seizures, the opposite of an anticonvulsant. These drugs generally act as stimulants at low doses, but are not used for this purpose due to the risk of convulsions and consequent e ...

effects that are similar to those of

picrotoxin Picrotoxin, also known as cocculin, is a poisonous crystalline plant compound. It was first isolated by the French pharmacist and chemist Pierre François Guillaume Boullay (1777–1869) in 1812. The name "picrotoxin" is a combination of the Gree ...

References

{{reflist Convulsants Plant toxins Tetrahydropyrans Polyynes Conjugated enynes Secondary alcohols