Toxic constituents of “white snakeroot”

Bonner, William A.; Graw, Joseph I. De; Bowen, Douglas M.; Shah, Vinod R.

doi:10.1016/s0040-4039(01)82661-7

Cited by 42 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…Couch (1927) reported the isolation of the toxin from extracts of white snakeroot and called it tremetol. This was erroneously thought to be a pure compound for many years until Bonner and colleagues (Bonner et al, 1961;Bonner and DeGraw, 1962) isolated three main ketones, tremetone, hydroxytremetone and dehydrotremetone from the ketone fraction of tremetol (Figure 1). Tremetone constituted the major part of the crude fraction tremetol and was presumed to be the principal toxin responsible for causing trembles in cattle (Beier and Norman, 1990).…”

Section: E Rugosummentioning

confidence: 99%

A review of the toxicosis and biological properties of the genus Eupatorium

et al. 1998

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Eupatorium genus grows wild in many parts of the world. A number of species of Eupatorium are toxic to grazing animals. Milk sickness in humans is caused by ingestion of milk of the animals reared on the pastures infested with Eupatorium rugosum (white snakeroot). While some information is available on the toxins in various species of Eupatorium, ambiguities still persist in extrapolation of the data to field incidence of toxicosis. Eupatorium genus has been used for its medicinal properties for many decades. A number of bioactive natural products have been reported in the extracts of Eupatorium spp. and the genus is a promising bioresource for preparation of drugs and value-added products.

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Section: E Rugosummentioning

confidence: 99%

A review of the toxicosis and biological properties of the genus Eupatorium

et al. 1998

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“…1,4−6 Couch suggested that toxin degradation was plant specific as he concurrently reported that the rayless goldenrod toxins were not destroyed by drying and that both fresh and dry plants are toxic. 1,4,5 Decades later, Bonner et al 7 and Bonner and DeGraw 8 extracted white snakeroot and separated the extract into a sterol fraction and a ketone fraction. The components of the sterol fraction were not toxic in a goldfish assay.…”

Section: ■ Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of Drying Methods and Toxicity of Rayless Goldenrod (Isocoma pluriflora) and White Snakeroot (Ageratina altissima) in Goats

Lee

Davis

Cook

et al. 2012

J. Agric. Food Chem.

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White snakeroot and rayless goldenrod cause "trembles" and "milk sickness" in livestock and humans, respectively. The toxin in white snakeroot and rayless goldenrod was identified in 1927 and 1930, respectively, as tremetol. It was reported that the toxin in white snakeroot disappears as it is dried and that completely dried plants were incapable of producing trembles or milk sickness. Conversely, it has been reported that the rayless goldenrod toxin was not destroyed by drying and that the plant is toxic either fresh or dry. In this study the concentrations of tremetone, dehydrotremetone, and structurally similar compounds were determined in white snakeroot and rayless goldenrod before and after various drying conditions. Tremetone, dehydrotremetone, and structurally similar compounds in rayless goldenrod and white snakeroot are most stable upon freeze-drying, followed by air-drying, and least stable upon oven-drying (60 °C). Also demonstrated is that tremetone is stable and that dried white snakeroot and rayless goldenrod are capable of inducing toxicosis in livestock.

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“…The first separation of a white snakeroot extract was reported in 1927, and the resultant crude toxic mixture was called tremetol [Couch, 19271. Tremetol was initially thought to be a pure compound, but it was actually a mixture that contained many components. Bonner et al [1961] and Bonner and DeGraw [1962] isolated three main ketones from the ketone fraction of tremetol. Tremetone (1) hydroxytremetone (2), and dehydrotremetone (3) were all toxic in a goldfish bioassay.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Isolation of the major component in white snakeroot that is toxic after microsomal activation: Possible explanation of sporadic toxicity of white snakeroot plants and extracts

et al. 1993

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Tremetone, the major toxic component in white snakeroot (Eupatorium rugosum Houtt) extracts, was isolated following an in vitro bioactivity assay. Microsomal activation was required to produce a product toxic to murine melanoma (B16F1) cells as well as five other mammalian cell cultures. The metabolic activation product(s) of tremetone is suspected to be responsible for the toxic activity of the plant. Tremetone is also smoothly converted to dehydrotremetone in the plant and cell free homogenates, and readily decomposes to dehydrotremetone in extracts. Dehydrotremetone is not toxic even after microsomal activation. The efficient conversion of tremetone to dehydrotremetone may explain why white snakeroot plant material and extracts have varied activities, and why a previous claim that tremetone was responsible for the toxic activity of white snakeroot was withdrawn. Rayless goldenrod extracts show the same toxic activity as white snakeroot and the toxic activity of rayless goldenrod is most likely due to tremetone.

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Toxic constituents of “white snakeroot”

Cited by 42 publications

References 2 publications

A review of the toxicosis and biological properties of the genus Eupatorium

A review of the toxicosis and biological properties of the genus Eupatorium

Evaluation of Drying Methods and Toxicity of Rayless Goldenrod (Isocoma pluriflora) and White Snakeroot (Ageratina altissima) in Goats

Isolation of the major component in white snakeroot that is toxic after microsomal activation: Possible explanation of sporadic toxicity of white snakeroot plants and extracts

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