Ichthyothereol is a toxic

polyyne In organic chemistry, a polyyne () is any organic compound with alternating single and triple bonds; that is, a series of consecutive alkynes, with ''n'' greater than 1. These compounds are also called polyacetylenes, especially in the natural p ...

compound found in the leaves and flowers of several plants in

South South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...

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 The Amazon basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries. The Amazon drainage basin covers an area of about , or about 35.5 percent of the South American continent. It is located in the countries of Bolivi ...

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 A natural product is a natural compound or substance produced by a living organism—that is, found in nature. In the broadest sense, natural products include any substance produced by life. Natural products can also be prepared by chemical syn ...

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 ''Dahlia coccinea'' is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae. Its common name is red dahlia, although the flowers can be orange or occasionally yellow, as well as the more common red. The species is native to Mexico M ...

''. 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 at ...

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 ...

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 exc ...

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