The Antiaris toxicaria (arrow poison tree) can kill and also save lives - what are its effects and uses?

There really is a tree species in the world called Antiaris toxicaria, known as the “most poisonous plant”. Antiaris toxicaria is also called the arrow poison tree, because the white latex flowing from its trunk is highly toxic; ethnic minorities in Xishuangbanna used it to coat arrowheads when hunting animals, and after being hit by an arrow, it kills on contact with blood, hence the name. So what effects and uses does it have?

1. Introduction

Antiaris toxicaria is a national third-class protected plant; it is a highly toxic plant and a medicinal plant. The milky white sap of Antiaris toxicaria is highly toxic. Once it comes into contact with wounds on humans or livestock, it can cause cardiac paralysis in the poisoned person (caused by arrhythmia), closure of blood vessels, blood coagulation, and even death by suffocation, so people call it “kills on contact with blood”. It is distributed in Guangdong (Leizhou Peninsula), Hainan, Guangxi, and southern Yunnan. Sri Lanka, India (including the Andaman Islands), Myanmar, Thailand, Indochina, Malaysia, Indonesia.

2. Effects and uses

Daily use:

The bark of Antiaris toxicaria is especially thick and rich in slender, flexible fibers. Ethnic minorities in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province, often cleverly use it to make mattresses, clothing, or tube skirts. Take a section of trunk of suitable length, beat it evenly all over with a small wooden stick, and when the bark separates from the woody layer, remove the entire section of bark like a snake shedding its skin, or split it open with a knife and peel it off in one whole piece, then soak it in water for about one month, then put it in clean water and rinse while beating. In this way the poisonous liquid is removed and the gum is stripped away, and after drying in the sun, a white, thick, soft fibrous layer is obtained. Mattresses made from it are both comfortable and durable, and even after decades of sleep they still have good elasticity; clothing or tube skirts made from it are both light and warm, and are deeply loved by local residents.

Pharmacological effects:

Cardiotonic effect: The ethanol extract of Antiaris toxicaria latex has effects such as strengthening the heart, raising blood pressure, and increasing cardiac output. Among the glycosides contained in this product, many have digitalis-like cardiotonic effects. For example, injection of 0.05 mg into the frog lymph sac can stop its heart in systole; it can cause changes in the cat electrocardiogram similar to those of huangjia glycoside in sequence, with slowed heartbeat, prolonged P-R interval, ectopic rhythm, tachycardia, and finally ventricular fibrillation leading to death; the cardiotonic potency in cats, that is, the minimum lethal dose (mg/kg) in cats, is: α-antiarin 0.116, β-antiarin 0.102, α-antiarol guloside 0.142, antiarin rhamnoside 0.125, malayotoxin glycoside 0.107, antiarin alloside 0.122, strophanthidin alloside 0.118, periplocin alloside 0.138, antiarin aglycone 0.359.

3. Origin

Antiaris toxicaria is mainly distributed in Guangdong (Leizhou Peninsula), Hainan, Guangxi, southern Yunnan, Sri Lanka, India (including the Andaman Islands), Myanmar, Thailand, Indochina, Malaysia, and Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi). Varieties are distributed in Oceania and Africa.

4. Habits

Antiaris toxicaria mostly grows in tropical seasonal rain forest and rain forest areas, with abundant heat, long summers and no winters, and weak influence from winter cold waves. 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. In years when a major cold wave moves southward, brief low temperatures below 0°C may occur from southwestern Guangxi to western Guangdong. Annual rainfall is 1200-2000 millimeters, and the dry and wet seasons are distinct or not very distinct, with relatively high air humidity; the annual average relative humidity is above 80%. On acidic bedrock such as granite, shale, and sandstone and on Quaternary red earth, the soil is latosol or red soil, with a pH value of 6.8-7.7. Antiaris toxicaria can form upper-layer giant trees of seasonal rain forests and often stands tall above the main forest canopy. Its root system is well developed and its wind resistance is strong. On coastal platforms with frequent wind disasters, isolated trees are also not easily blown down, but they often grow relatively short.