The Cholo Indians of western Colombia use the venom of the poison frog (Phyllobates aurotaenia) for hunting. Witkop et al. were able to isolate several poisons, the batrachotoxins, from the secretion obtained from the animals on heating 11921. These compounds are the strongest known cardiotoxins. Paralysis and convulsions are followed by death within a few minutes.An artifact of the batrachotoxins is batrachotoxinin A (68), which is equivalent to strychnine in its toxicity. X-ray structure analysis [I931 of (68) gave the unusual steroid alkaloid structure indicated.Interesting new synthetic developments in the steroid field include the bis-quaternary piperidinium com-7% H-C-OH pound (69) and the 21-fluoro-6-dimethylaminomethyl-1 7cc-acetoxyprogesterone derivative (70).When the compound (69) is administered to humans in small doses, it causes a neuromuscular block, which can be removed by neostigniinerl941. The authors classify the action as being of the curare type.A remarkable analgesic action, which is superior to that of codeine and cannot be eliminated by morphine antagonists, is shown by the steroid (70) in animal experiments 11951.
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