POISONOUS PARTS
Whole plant, especially the tubers.2–4
TOXICITY
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Toxic Constituents
Colchicine, gloriosine and superbine.5–10
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Toxic Dose
Reported lethal dose: 7 mg of colchicine (about 4 g of tuber).9,11
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Mechanism
Colchicine prevents the assembly of microtubules and results in failure of mitosis. This leads to bone marrow suppression and gastrointestinal toxicity. Gloriosine is a related compound that shares the above mechanism.10,11
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Poisoning Features
Nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and abdominal pain. Peripheral neuropathy, bone marrow suppression and multi-organ failure in severe cases.5–9,11,12
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Poisoning Events
Multiple cases of G. superba poisoning due to its use as a suicidal agent, overdose during medicinal use or confusion of its tubers with other edible species have been reported in Asia.2–4,13
CLINICAL MANAGEMENT
Supportive treatment.
IDENTIFICATION FEATURES
Perennial herbs, stems scandent, 2–3 m or longer. Leaves 7–13 cm long, apex long caudate with a tendril. Flowers nodding; pedicels 10–15 cm long. Tepals reflexed, bright red, sometimes tinged with yellow, 4.5–5 cm × 7–9 mm, margin much crisped. Stamens 6; filaments 3–4 cm long; anthers about 1 cm long. Styles 2.5–3.5 cm long; stigma lobes 6–7 mm long. Capsules 6–12 cm long, fleshy. Seeds red.14
MEDICINAL USES
In Asia and Africa, the plant has been used in folk medicine for the treatment of inflammation, parasitic and bacterial infection. In addition, colchicine is used to treat gout in western medicine.11,15,16
LABORATORY ANALYSIS
Colchicine can be detected by HPLC-DAD, GC-MS and LC-MS/MS.17–19
