Where does the highly toxic plant Antiaris toxicaria come from, and is there an antidote?

The scientific name of Antiaris toxicaria is "see blood seal throat" (Antiaris toxicaria), and it is a national third-class protected plant. It is a highly toxic plant and a medicinal plant. Its milky white sap contains a potent toxin, and once it contacts a wound on a human or animal, it can cause the poisoned person to die within 20 minutes to 2 hours. So, where is the origin of Antiaris toxicaria?

1. Where is the origin of Antiaris toxicaria?

1. Antiaris toxicaria is a tree of the mulberry family (Moraceae), 25-40 m tall, with a diameter at breast height of 30-40 cm; large trees occasionally have buttress roots; the bark is gray and slightly rough; young branchlets are covered with brown soft hairs and become wrinkled when dry; the leaves are elliptic to obovate and turn tea-brown when dry; the flowering period is March-April, the fruiting period is May-June, and the drupe is pear-shaped, bright red to purplish red.

2. Antiaris toxicaria mostly grows in tropical monsoon forest and rainforest areas. In China, it is mainly distributed in Guangdong (Leizhou Peninsula), Hainan, Guangxi, and southern Yunnan. Abroad, it is mainly distributed in Sri Lanka, India (including the Andaman Islands), Myanmar, Thailand, Indochina, Malaysia, and Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi), with varieties distributed in Oceania and Africa.

3. Antiaris toxicaria mostly grows in rainforests below 1,500 m in altitude, on acidic bedrock such as granite, shale, and sandstone and Quaternary red clay, where the soil is latosol or red soil, with a pH value of 6.8-7.7; the annual average temperature is mostly 21-24°C, the average temperature of the coldest month is above 13-17°C, and the extreme minimum temperature is above 0-5°C; the annual rainfall is 1,200-2,000 mm, and the annual average relative humidity is above 80%.

4. Antiaris toxicaria is a national third-class protected plant. In Hainan, it is mostly found in the Wuzhishan tropical rainforest area, which is a national-level nature reserve and the best-preserved area; most of the areas where it is distributed in Yunnan are nature reserves, and outside the reserves the local people have a habit of protecting it and often do not cut it at will; in Guangdong and Guangxi, protection has been strengthened and planting expanded in production areas where no reserves have been established.

2. Does Antiaris toxicaria have an antidote?

Antiaris toxicaria has an antidote, and the antidote is red-backed bamboo-pole grass.

1. Antiaris toxicaria is a highly toxic plant. Its milky white sap contains a potent toxin, and humans and animals will die quickly after being injured and poisoned. In this regard, there is a saying among the people of Xishuangbanna: “seven up, eight down, nine fall to the ground.” Therefore, in places such as Yunnan and Hainan, the sap is used as arrow poison to shoot and kill wild animals.

2. Although Antiaris toxicaria is toxic, it does have an antidote, which is red-backed bamboo-pole grass, the only antidote for Antiaris toxicaria; it grows in the tropical rainforest of Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, China, mostly around Antiaris toxicaria, and looks like small grass, with red-green leaves and a slender plant.

3. Antiaris toxicaria is a medicinal plant. Its sap and seeds can be used as medicine. The sap has the effects of strengthening the heart, inducing vomiting, purging, and anesthesia, and is used externally to treat lymph node tuberculosis; the seeds have an antipyretic effect and are mainly used for dysentery.

The above is an introduction to the origin of Antiaris toxicaria and whether it has an antidote. We hope it is useful to everyone.