Atropa belladonna:

1. Atropa belladonna: The deadly nightshade

2. Kingdom:Plantae Class: Magnoliophyta Order: Solanales Family: Solanaceae Genus: Atropa Species: A. belladonna Taxonomy

3. Taxonomy (cont.) • Atropa • From the Greek God Atropos • One of the fates that cut the thread of life • Belladonna • “Beautiful Lady” in Italian • Common Names: • Deadly Nightshade • Devil’s Herb • Apples of Sodom • Same family as the potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, tobacco, chili peppers, etc.

4. Low growing perennial herb/shrub that grows 2-6 ft tall Not hardy perennial Sensitive to being transplanted Thick root Leaves Simple, alternate Morphology & Botanical Relationships

5. Flowers Solitary bell-shaped (drooping and tubular) 5-lobe Dull red-purple or greenish purple Fruit Glossy, purple-black berries Green berries turn purplish-black as plant matures Morphology & Botanical Relationships (cont.)

6. Native to Eurasia Naturalized in many parts of the world Cultivated/harvested in US: California, Oregon, Washington, Michigan, New Jersey, New York Some farms even export to Europe Species Distribution

7. Habitat • Seeds are small: about 10,000 plants will germinate from 1-2oz of seed • Germination takes up to several weeks • In warm, moist, sterile soil • Plant requires: • rich, moist • plenty of fertilizer • weed free environment

8. Habitat (cont.) • Landscape in flower gardens as herbaceous flowering ornamental • May even be considered a weed in some areas • Plant is usually high yielding • But susceptible to wilt disease caused by potato beetle and flea beetle

9. Active Compounds Tropane Alkaloids Atropine Hyoscyamine Scopolamine C17H23NO3 C17H23NO3 C17H21NO4

10. History of Uses • Attributed to the Bacchanalian orgies • Women tear off clothes, go into frenzied dances and literally throw themselves at men • Used in witches’ brew and flying ointments • Anointed broomstick

11. History of Uses (cont.) • Romans used plant as a “weapon” • Contaminated enemies food storage • Used to poison the troops of Marcus Antonius during the Parthian Wars. • Scottish troops used it during a truce to subdue the invading Danes. • Legend: Scottish troops put belladonna into enemies’ liquor supply • Waited for enemies to fall asleep and then kill them

12. History of Uses (cont.) • “Truth serum” in the old days • Used in many legal battles and court cases • Cosmetics: • Spanish and Italian Women • Extracts used as eye drops to dilate pupils, giving pupils a more intense, hypnotic, and attractive appeal • Because pupil dilate when people are aroused; therefore, making eye contact more intense

13. History of Uses (cont.) • Pain reducer: • 1992: Scopolamine added to morphine to cause “twilight sleep” • Lessened the pain and mortality of childbirth • Life saver: • In 1943 (WWII), the Germans had developed a nerve gas in which Atropa (atropine) was the only antidote • In Tijuana Mexico (1967), people poisoned by insecticide – parathion - when they ate the bread that was exposed to the chemical • Use of atropine saved many lives

14. Uses in Medicine • Slows action of smooth muscle system • Parkinson’s symptoms • Irregularities in heart rate • Dilates pupils • Reduces salivation • Stomach and bladder cramps • Helps to relax pre-surgery patients

15. Uses in Medicine Cont. • Combats infection and decreases pain when combined with methylene blue, phenyl salicylate, and benzoic acid. • Prevents nausea and vomiting caused by motion sickness • Counteracts the effects of nerve gas.

16. Recent Studies • Study done in 2006 • Older patients who could not reach their target heart rate were given atropine. • Control group did not receive atropine when they did not reach their target heart rate. • Those who received atropine were able to reach their target heart rate while the control group was not.

17. Recent Studies 2007 Singapore • One group of children received atropine eye drops in one eye while the other eye was allowed to progress naturally. • Second, control group was given saline eye drops. • The eye in which the experimental group received the atropine eye drops was found to stop myopic progression while the other eye progressed naturally. • The control group saw no such benefits from their saline eye drops.

18. Effects on Humans • Increased/rapid heart rate • Fits of laughter • Inability to urinate • Dilated pupils • Dryness of mouth • Nausea, vomiting • Muscle failure • Exhaustion

19. Signs of Overdose • Stop perspiring • Rise in body temperature • Inability to see or blurred vision • Hallucinations • Flushed skin • Confusion • Coma • Death

20. Harvesting and Processing - Harvested at full bloom - Can be harvested as soon as the first year of growth (1crop obtained) - Continue harvesting for 2-4 years (2-3 crops) - Once plant is two years old, can harvest twice a year: June and September. • After fourth year, all of plant is cut down and new seeds are planted • Because there is no further increase in alkaloid content

21. Harvesting and Processing Cont. - For the first few years all of the plant save for the last inch or so is cut away. - The harvested portions of the plant are allowed to dry in the sun. • Chemical extraction and isolation result in the production of atropine. • Atropine sulfate is stored in a 0.9% saline solution and preservative (benzol alcohol)

22. Summary • What we planned to do initially - carrots • Atropa belladonna is a member of the Solanaceae (potato) family • Although it is a poisonous plant, it still has many uses. Ironically, among the important ones are medicinal use • Mainly used to speed up heart rates

23. What We Think? • We found it to be an interesting plant • A prime example of a highly poisonous plant, yet still very useful for us • Atropa belladonna is a plant that has ongoing research done on it – mainly to study affects of the tropane alkaloids • Maybe they’ll “accidentally” find some other uses of the plant???

24. References • Emboden, William. Narcotic Plants. Collier Books, New York, 1980. • Fan, D. S. P.; Lam, D. S. C.; Chan, C. K. M.; Fan, A. H.; Cheung, E. Y. Y.; Rao, S. K. “Topical Atropine In Retarding Myopic Progression and Axial Length Growth in Children with Moderate to Severe Myopia: A Pilot Study”. Jpn J Ophthalmol 51, 27-33, 2007. • Simpson, Beryll. Economic Botany: Plants in our World, 3rd Ed. McGraw Hill, New York, • 2001. • http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=ATROP • http://www.ams.usda.gov/NOSB/MaterialsReview/AtropineFinalSupplement.pdf • http://www.biopix.dk/Photo.asp?PhotoId=1697 • http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/poison/Atropbe.htm • http://www.eyehealthillinois.org/dilatedbig.html • http://www.herbs2000.com/herbs/herbs_belladonna.htm • http://www.rz.uni-karlsruhe.de/~db26/fotos/_Gift-_und_Arzneipflanzen?C=D%3BO=A • http://www.siu.edu/~ebl/leaflets/atropa.htm • http://www.swsbm.com/Images/New10-2003/Atropa_belladonna-7.jpg • http://www.triora.org/processo_ing.html • http://www.uic.edu/sph/glakes/kids/case1/slides1/ss14.htm • http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/WITCHES/witches.html

25. Questions?? Thank You!