''Veratrum'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Melanthiaceae Melanthiaceae, also called the bunchflower family, is a family (biology), family of flowering plant, flowering herbaceous perennial plants native to the Northern Hemisphere. Along with many other lilioid monocots, early authors considered member ...

. It occurs in damp habitats across much of temperate and subarctic

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

, and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> ''Veratrum'' species are vigorous

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of ...

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

s with highly poisonous black

rhizomes In botany and dendrology, a rhizome ( ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...

, and panicles of white or brown flowers on erect stems. In English they are known as false hellebores, false helleborines, and corn lilies. However, ''Veratrum'' is not closely related to

hellebores Commonly known as hellebores (), the Eurasian genus ''Helleborus'' consists of approximately 20 species of herbaceous or evergreen perennial flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae, within which it gave its name to the tribe of Helleboreae ...

helleborine Helleborine is the common name for a number of species of orchid. It does not correspond to any currently used taxonomic category. Some of the plants called helleborines are classified in the genus ''Epipactis'', some in genus ''Cephalanthera ' ...

maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

, or

lilies ''Lilium'' ( ) is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large and often prominent flowers. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world. Most species are ...

. File:Veratrum nigrum Ciemiężyca czarna flowers 01.jpg, ''

Veratrum nigrum ''Veratrum nigrum'', the black false hellebore,Bonine, ''Black Plants: 75 Striking Choices for the Garden,'' 2009, p. 75.Toogood, ''The Gardener's Encyclopedia of Perennials,'' 1988, p. 144. is a widespread Eurasian species of perennial flowerin ...

'' flowers,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

File:Veratrum album subsp. oxysepalum 0807.JPG, ''

Veratrum album ''Veratrum album'', the false helleborine, white hellebore, European white hellebore, or white veratrum ( syn. ''Veratrum lobelianum'' Bernh.) is a poisonous plant in the family Melanthiaceae. It is native to Europe and parts of western Asia (we ...

'' subsp. ''oxysepalum'',

Fukushima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Fukushima Prefecture has a population of 1,771,100 () and has a geographic area of . Fukushima Prefecture borders Miyagi Prefecture and Yamagata Prefecture ...

, Japan File:VeratrumViride-pousses-1.jpg, ''

Veratrum viride ''Veratrum viride'', known as Indian poke, corn-lily, Indian hellebore, false hellebore, green false hellebore, or giant false-helleborine, is a species of ''Veratrum'' native to eastern and western (but not central) North America.Flora of Nort ...

'' shoot emerging,

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, Canada File:Veratrum stamineum 06.jpg, ''

Veratrum stamineum ''Veratrum stamineum'' is a species of plant in the family Melanthiaceae Melanthiaceae, also called the bunchflower family, is a family (biology), family of flowering plant, flowering herbaceous perennial plants native to the Northern Hemisph ...

'' in the mountains of Japan

Linguistics

Veratrum is from the

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

word for "hellebore", of uncertain origin;

Anatoly Liberman Anatoly Liberman (; born 10 March 1937) is a linguist, medievalist, etymologist, poet, translator of poetry (mainly from and into Russian), and literary critic. Liberman is Professor of Germanic Philology in the Department of German, Nordic, Sla ...

believes that the reconstructed

Proto-Slavic Proto-Slavic (abbreviated PSl., PS.; also called Common Slavic or Common Slavonic) is the unattested, reconstructed proto-language of all Slavic languages. It represents Slavic speech approximately from the 2nd millennium BC through the 6th ...

term for the genus ''Veratrum'', ''*čemerъ'', is probably

cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language. Because language change can have radical effects on both the s ...

with the English word hemlock, a plant similarly used for poison in

antiquity Antiquity or Antiquities may refer to: Historical objects or periods Artifacts *Antiquities, objects or artifacts surviving from ancient cultures Eras Any period before the European Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) but still within the histo ...

Ecology

''Veratrum'' species are used as food plants by the

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

e of some

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) or lepidopterans is an order (biology), order of winged insects which includes butterflies and moths. About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera have been described, representing 10% of the total described species of living organ ...

species including

Setaceous Hebrew Character The setaceous Hebrew character (''Xestia c-nigrum'') is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. It is found in the Palearctic realm. It is a common specie ...

Habitat

Widely distributed in montane habitats of

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (approximately 23.5° to 66.5° N/S of the Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ran ...

Northern Hemisphere, ''Veratrum'' species prefer full sunlight and deep, wet soils, and are common in wet mountain meadows, swamps, and near streambanks.

Toxicity

''Veratrum'' plants contain highly toxic

steroidal alkaloid Steroidal alkaloids have the basic steroidal skeleton with nitrogen-based functional groups attached to the skeleton. More specifically, they are distinguished by their tetracyclic cyclopentanoperhydrophenanthrene skeleton that marks their clos ...

s (e.g.

veratridine Veratridine is a steroidal alkaloid found in plants of the lily family, specifically the genera ''Veratrum'' and ''Schoenocaulon''. Upon absorption through the skin or mucous membranes, it acts as a neurotoxin by binding to and preventing the inact ...

) that activate

sodium ion channels Sodium channels are integral membrane proteins that form ion channels, conducting sodium ions (Na+) through a cell's membrane. They belong to the superfamily of cation channels. Classification They are classified into 2 types: Function In exc ...

and cause potentially fatal

cardiac arrhythmia Arrhythmias, also known as cardiac arrhythmias, are irregularities in the heartbeat, including when it is too fast or too slow. Essentially, this is anything but normal sinus rhythm. A resting heart rate that is too fast – above 100 beat ...

s if ingested. The teratogenic steroid

Cyclopamine Cyclopamine (11-deoxojervine) is a naturally occurring steroidal alkaloid. It is a teratogenic component of corn lily ('' Veratrum californicum''), which when consumed during gestation has been demonstrated to induce birth defects, including the ...

is also found in these plants and is known to induce

holoprosencephaly Holoprosencephaly (HPE) is a cephalic disorder in which the prosencephalon (the forebrain of the embryo) fails to Prenatal development, develop into two Cerebral hemisphere, hemispheres, typically occurring between the 18th and 28th day of gestati ...

in farm animals. All parts of these plants are poisonous, with the roots and

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome ( ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and Shoot (botany), shoots from its Node (botany), nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from ...

s being the most poisonous. If ingested, symptoms, which typically occur between thirty minutes and four hours, include

nausea Nausea is a diffuse sensation of unease and discomfort, sometimes perceived as an urge to vomit. It can be a debilitating symptom if prolonged and has been described as placing discomfort on the chest, abdomen, or back of the throat. Over 30 d ...

vomiting Vomiting (also known as emesis, puking and throwing up) is the forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth and sometimes the nose. Vomiting can be the result of ailments like food poisoning, gastroenteritis, pre ...

, abdominal pain, numbness,

headache A headache, also known as cephalalgia, is the symptom of pain in the face, head, or neck. It can occur as a migraine, tension-type headache, or cluster headache. There is an increased risk of Depression (mood), depression in those with severe ...

sweating Perspiration, also known as sweat, is the fluid secreted by sweat glands in the skin of mammals. Two types of sweat glands can be found in humans: eccrine glands and apocrine glands. The eccrine sweat glands are distributed over much of the ...

, muscle weakness,

bradycardia Bradycardia, also called bradyarrhythmia, is a resting heart rate under 60 beats per minute (BPM). While bradycardia can result from various pathological processes, it is commonly a physiological response to cardiovascular conditioning or due ...

hypotension Hypotension, also known as low blood pressure, is a cardiovascular condition characterized by abnormally reduced blood pressure. Blood pressure is the force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries as the heart pumps out blood and is ...

, and

seizures A seizure is a sudden, brief disruption of brain activity caused by abnormal, excessive, or synchronous neuronal firing. Depending on the regions of the brain involved, seizures can lead to changes in movement, sensation, behavior, awareness, o ...

. Treatment for poisoning includes

gastrointestinal The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract, digestive tract, alimentary canal) is the tract or passageway of the digestive system that leads from the mouth to the anus. The tract is the largest of the body's systems, after the cardiovascular system. ...

decontamination with

activated charcoal "Activated" is a song by English singer Cher Lloyd. It was released on 22 July 2016 through Vixen Records. The song was made available to stream exclusively on ''Rolling Stone'' a day before to release (on 21 July 2016). Background In an inter ...

followed by supportive care including

antiemetic An antiemetic is a drug that is effective against vomiting and nausea. Antiemetics are typically used to treat motion sickness and the side effects of opioid analgesics, general anaesthetics, and chemotherapy directed against cancer. They may ...

s for persistent nausea and vomiting, along with

atropine Atropine is a tropane alkaloid and anticholinergic medication used to treat certain types of nerve agent and pesticide poisonings as well as some types of slow heart rate, and to decrease saliva production during surgery. It is typically give ...

for treatment of bradycardia and

fluid replacement Fluid replacement or fluid resuscitation is the medical practice of replenishing bodily fluid lost through sweating, bleeding, fluid shifts or other pathologic processes. Fluids can be replaced with oral rehydration therapy (drinking), intravenous ...

and

vasopressor An antihypotensive, also known as a vasopressor, is an agent that raises blood pressure by constricting blood vessels, thereby increasing systemic vascular resistance. This is different from inotropes which increase the force of cardiac contrac ...

s for the treatment of hypotension. The toxic alkaloids are only produced during active growth, and are degraded and metabolized during the winter months. Native Americans harvested their roots for medicinal purposes during their dormant period.

Uses

Native Americans were well aware of ''Veratrums extreme toxicity and used the roots to poison arrows before combat. The roots, when dried and ground into powder, were also used as an insecticide.Edible and Medicinal plants of the West, Gregory L. Tilford, Western American Indian tribes have a long history of using these plants medicinally, and combined minute amounts of the winter-harvested root of these plants with '' Salvia dorii'' to potentiate the effects and reduce the herb's toxicity.

Medical research

During the 1930s ''Veratrum'' extracts were investigated in the treatment of high blood pressure in humans. While initial results were promising, many of the patients suffered side effects due to the narrow

therapeutic index The therapeutic index (TI; also referred to as therapeutic ratio) is a quantitative measurement of the relative safety of a drug with regard to risk of overdose. It is a comparison of the amount of a therapeutic agent that causes toxicity to the ...

of these products. Due to their toxicity and the availability of other less toxic drugs, use of ''Veratrum'' as a treatment for high blood pressure in humans was discontinued.

Herbal medicine

''Veratrum'' plants are known both in western herbalism and traditional Chinese medicine as toxic herbs to be used with great caution. It is one of the medicinals (''Li lu'', 藜蘆) cited in Chinese herbal texts as incompatible with many other common herbs because of its potentiating effects. Especially, many root (and root-shaped) herbs, particularly

ginseng Ginseng () is the root of plants in the genus ''Panax'', such as South China ginseng (''Panax notoginseng, P. notoginseng''), Korean ginseng (''Panax ginseng, P. ginseng''), and American ginseng (''American ginseng, P. quinquefol ...

, san qi, and hai seng, will create and or exacerbate a toxic effect.Bensky, D., Clavey, S., Stoger, E. (2004). ''Materia Medica'' (3rd edition). Seattle: Eastland Press. p. 461. The roots of '' V. nigrum'' and '' V. schindleri'' have been used in Chinese herbalism, where plants of this genus are known as ''li lu''. ''Li lu'' is used internally as a powerful emetic of last resort, and topically to kill external parasites, treat

tinea Dermatophytosis, also known as tinea and ringworm, is a fungal infection of the skin (a dermatomycosis), that may affect skin, hair, and nails. Typically it results in a red, itchy, scaly, circular rash. Hair loss may occur in the area affe ...

and

scabies Scabies (; also sometimes known as the seven-year itch) is a contagious human skin infestation by the tiny (0.2–0.45 mm) mite ''Sarcoptes scabiei'', variety ''hominis''. The word is from . The most common symptoms are severe itchiness a ...

, and stop itching. Some herbalists refuse to prescribe ''li lu'' internally, citing the extreme difficulty in preparing a safe and effective dosage, and that death has occurred with dosages of as little as 600 milligrams.

Species

;Accepted species * '' Veratrum albiflorum'':

Russian Far East The Russian Far East ( rus, Дальний Восток России, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in North Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asia, Asian continent, and is coextensive with the Far Easte ...

* ''

'':

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

* '' Veratrum alpestre'':

Primorye Primorsky Krai, informally known as Primorye, is a federal subject (a krai) of Russia, part of the Far Eastern Federal District in the Russian Far East. The city of Vladivostok on the southern coast of the krai is its administrative center, an ...

, Korea, Japan * '' Veratrum anticleoides'':

* ''

Veratrum californicum ''Veratrum californicum'' (California corn lily, white or California false hellebore) is an extremely poisonous plant native to western North America, including the Sierra Nevada and Rocky Mountains, as far north as Washington and as far south ...

'': western USA; Mexico ( Chihuahua,

Durango Durango, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Durango, is one of the 31 states which make up the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 Federal Entities of Mexico, situated in the northwest portion of the country. With a population of 1,832,650 ...

) * '' Veratrum dahuricum'':

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

, China * '' Veratrum dolichopetalum'':

, China * '' Veratrum fimbriatum'':

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

( Sonoma + Mendocino Cos) * '' Veratrum formosanum'':

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

* '' Veratrum grandiflorum'': China * '' Veratrum hybridum'' (syn ''V. latifolium)'': eastern United States * '' Veratrum insolitum'':

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

* '' Veratrum lobelianum: Russia,

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

Xinjiang Xinjiang,; , SASM/GNC romanization, SASM/GNC: Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Sinkiang, officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People' ...

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

* '' Veratrum longibracteatum'':

Honshu , historically known as , is the largest of the four main islands of Japan. It lies between the Pacific Ocean (east) and the Sea of Japan (west). It is the list of islands by area, seventh-largest island in the world, and the list of islands by ...

* '' Veratrum maackii'':

, China,

, Japan * '' Veratrum mengtzeanum'': China,

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

* '' Veratrum micranthum'':

Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...

Yunnan Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...

* ''

'':

Eurasia Eurasia ( , ) is a continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. According to some geographers, Physical geography, physiographically, Eurasia is a single supercontinent. The concept of Europe and Asia as distinct continents d ...

from France to

* '' Veratrum oblongum'':

Hubei Hubei is a province of China, province in Central China. It has the List of Chinese provincial-level divisions by GDP, seventh-largest economy among Chinese provinces, the second-largest within Central China, and the third-largest among inland ...

Jiangxi ; Gan: ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = , translit_lang1_type3 = , translit_lang1_info3 = , image_map = Jiangxi in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_caption = Location ...

* '' Veratrum oxysepalum'':

Asiatic Russia North Asia or Northern Asia () is the northern region of Asia, which is defined in geographical terms and consists of three federal districts of Russia: Ural, Siberian, and the Far Eastern. North Asia is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to its no ...

, China,

, Japan,

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

* '' Veratrum parviflorum'': southern

Appalachians The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, are a mountain range in eastern to northeastern North America. The term "Appalachian" refers to several different regions associated with the mountain range, and its surrounding terrain ...

in eastern USA * '' Veratrum schindleri'': China * '' Veratrum shanense'': China,

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

* ''

'': Japan * '' Veratrum taliense'':

* '' Veratrum × tonussii '': Italy * '' Veratrum versicolor'':

, China * '' Veratrum virginicum'': central and eastern United States * ''

'': northeastern and northwestern

(but not central) * '' Veratrum woodii'': south-central United States

References

External links

United States Department of Agriculture Plants Profile

Jepson manual treatment
{{Authority control Medicinal plants Melanthiaceae genera

Linguistics

Ecology

Habitat

Toxicity

Uses

Medical research

Herbal medicine

Species

See also

References

External links