May apple Podophyllum Podophyllum peltatum L

May apple
Podophyllum
Podophyllum peltatum L.
FAMILY: Berberidaceae

DISTRIBUTION:
Podophyllum is found in open clearings in moist woods and along road banks as a migrant from adjacent wood lots. It is also encountered in wet or damp meadows, open fields, and pastures.

DESCRIPTION:
Podophyllum can be recognized by sepals: 6, falling early; petals: 6-9, white, 1-2 cm long; stamens: twice as many as the petals; ovary: oval, with a large sessile stigma; fruit: yellow when ripe, 4-5 cm, fleshy pulp edible, many-seeded; plants: in colonies; perennial from a rhizome; the flowering stem with two, umbrella-shaped leaves and a short-peduncled, solitary flower in the axil.

TOXIC PARTS:
The herbage, rootstock, and seeds are poisonous.

TOXICITY:
In humans and livestock symptoms vary and generally involve severe gastroenteritis, diarrhea, vomiting, and violent catharsis.

TOXIC PRINCIPLES:
Podophyllin, a resinoid toxin, is a very complex mixture of lignins (including podophylloxin, alpha- and beta- peltatins) and flavonols Sixteen physiologically active, well-characterized compounds have been isolated in podophyllin. Chemical analysis reveals 3-6% resin and 0.2 – 1.0% podophyllotoxin, picropodophyllin, quercetin, and peltatins.

TREATMENT:
Gasric lavage and emesis; Treat symptoms as they appear, supportive therapy; Charcoal; Antidiarrheal agents.