Curare(Curare) - curare poison - refers to
family loganiaceae (?).
Poison for lubricating arrows, used
South American Indians. Sources
differ in the description of the components of this poison:
indicate different species of Strychnos, as well as
Cocculus toxiferos and snake venoms. Other
researchers write that arrows are lubricated
poisonous secretions of toads. Outwardly curare
reminiscent of licorice extract. Substance used in the tests
Wesselhoeft, was provided by Merck from Darmstadt.
The drug is prepared from a tincture.
CHARACTERISTIC
Curare causes muscular paralysis, exerting its effect, apparently,
exclusively on neuromuscular synapses, without damaging either the nervous or
muscle tissue and without affecting sensitivity and consciousness. So
Thus, the action of Curare is in many respects the opposite of that of Nux vomica,
despite claims that the juice of strychnine-containing plants is included in
composition of this poison. Curare causes death due to respiratory paralysis
muscles. Reflex (secondary) action in Curare is not expressed or at all
absent, in contrast to Nux vomica, and this is one of the important
instructions for homeopathic use of the drug. Published
report of cure with Curare 200 pseudohypertrophic
paralysis.
Curare causes a condition resembling catalepsy; arising from
on awakening, immobility of the body, combined with a fixed gaze.
Many of the secretions of this remedy have a stench.
Burkhardt published two cases of diabetes cure in middle-aged men
using Curare 4.
This remedy is indicated by: great debility, reaching a degree
paralysis; weakness in the elderly; nervous weakness due to loss
physiological fluids.
PSYCHE
inability to think or learn; forgetfulness; lethargy;
drowsiness; apathy. Indecision. Excitement, haste.
Depression, desire to be alone.
Epilepsy. Catalepsy.
TYPE
The drug is suitable for scrofulous children.
TROPICITY
Many symptoms occur on the right side.
CLINIC
Beli. Rabies. Vaginitis. Headache. Dizziness. Depression. Diabetes.
Dysmenorrhea. Scrofula. Heartburn. Ulceration of the cervix (scirr). Hiccup.
Sciatica. Catalepsy. Qatar. Cough. Whooping cough. Facial paralysis. Corns.
Neuralgia. Nervous weakness. Fainting. Dyspnea. Ozen. Numbness. Otitis.
Paralysis. Paralysis of the respiratory muscles. Paralysis of mimic muscles. Hepatic
spots. Diarrhea. Uterine lesions. Ear lesions. Pseudohypertrophic
paralysis. Ptosis. Cancer. Vomit. Palpitation. Weakness. Dorsal dryness.
Tetanus. Nausea. Consumption. Eczema. Emphysema. Epilepsy. Ulcers.
GENERAL SYMPTOMS
Piercing pain. Throbbing pain.
Weakness; heaviness; numbness, sometimes with tingling.
Great weakness, reaching the degree of paralysis; weakness in the elderly;
nervous weakness due to loss of body fluids.
Many discharges have a characteristic stench.
Ptosis. Cancer. Weakness. Nervous weakness. Scrofula.
LEATHER
Blueness of the skin, although the patient has a fever. Itching with hunger.
Scrofulous eruptions.
Eczema, especially on the face and behind the ears.
Yellow-brown liver spots. Corns. Ulcers.
DREAM
Drowsiness; can't help but doze off.
At night there is anxiety, a constant desire to stick out the feet from under
blankets, especially closer to the morning. Even a long sleep does not bring the feeling
a good night's rest; dream of fire and day cares; worse if long
lies in bed, must get up, otherwise the feet and back begin to ache.
FEVER
Chill : running up back; spreads from the stomach;
starts in the abdomen and covers the whole body; without thirst.
The heat is worse at night and in the open air.
Sweating comes from any effort.
Sweat: cold, bloody; sweating worse at night.
After the fever comes a cough with redness of the face and throbbing, as if
hammer, pain in the head.
HEAD
There is a feeling that the brain is filled with fluid.
Confusion of thoughts, with great heaviness on vertex.
Headache on the background of neurosis; piercing pain, covering the whole
head, forcing to lie stretched out; stiffness in the neck, head
thrown back; painful undulations in the brain, as if
full of liquid neuralgic pain radiating from the area
forehead to neck and face; strong blows in the region of the cerebellum.
Piercing pain in temples, worse right. Pain radiating from
base of the brain up; aggravated during chewing. Headache:
clouding thoughts; aggravated by violent movements or stooping.
Tearing, splitting headache on coughing; compelling
hold the patient's head to the side. Sharp stitches over the right eye,
extending backward through the right half of the head.
Blows to the head as if struck with a hammer, combined with vomiting of bile.
Congestion of blood to the head.
DIZZINESS
sudden dizziness; the patient faints when standing or walking.
Vertigo when looking at close objects or at water.
FACE
Paralysis of mimic muscles. Facial paralysis with cheek asymmetry; in
some cases with difficulty swallowing.
Aching pain in the right side of the face. Eczema on the face.
EYES
Heaviness of the eyelids; the patient can hardly lift them; ptosis (right-sided).
Sunken eyes, haggard face.
Eyes red, hot, sensitive to light.
It seems as if the eyes are full of splinters.
Black spots in the field of vision, especially when reading.
EARS
Ear lesions. Various sounds in the ears: whistling; screaming sounds
wild animals; ringing in the right ear. Piercing pain spreads from
ears down along the body and reaches the legs; forces the patient to lie down.
Internal otitis, maddening, with purulent discharge.
Eczema on the skin behind the ears.
NERVOUS SYSTEM
Sciatica with great stiffness.
Neuralgia. Paralysis. Facial paralysis.
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
Shortness of breath, stitching pain in right side.
Dyspnea from weakness of motor nerves, consumption or emphysema.
Paralysis of the respiratory muscles. Shortness of breath, worse on going up.
Burning heat and fullness in the throat.
Severe pain in the lungs, especially in the left; sharp, penetrating the entire chest
cell pain; there is always a marked aggravation in wet weather;
shortness of breath, chronic cough.
Whooping cough. Consumption. Emphysema.
RIB CAGE
Painful tenderness of the chest, the patient can hardly bear
pressure with a stethoscope.
Pain and numbness in the left side of the chest and in the left arm.
COUGH
Always dry, hacking cough, with sore chest wall;
worse in damp weather or when laughing. Spasmodic cough, shaking everything
body that causes vomiting (which also often occurs after an attack
cough); causing headache and redness of the face.
Painful morning cough. Cough worse on inhalation
and cold air, during laughter, movement, food.
NOSE
Qatar. Ozena; secretion of lumps of fetid pus.
HEART AND CIRCULATION
Anguish behind the sternum, palpitation and stinging pain in the heart. Fainting.
ENDOCRINE SYSTEM
Diabetes.
MOUTH
The tongue and face are beveled to the right. Coated tongue. Dry mouth.
On awakening, the tongue is yellowish at the base, with raised papillae,
pale pink above, yellow-white bloom.
. smack. Bitterness and taste of blood in the mouth.
STOMACH
Sudden feeling of hunger, up to faintness. intense thirst, especially
in the evening and at night. Relief after the first sip of food.
Chill after eating. Frequent painful hiccups. Nausea in the morning; after meal.
Vomiting of green bile at night, with such weakness that
the patient can hardly stand up. Feeling of emptiness and faintness in the stomach.
Acute rheumatic pain in the pit of the stomach, followed by nausea.
Shootings in the stomach. Heartburn, pain and bloating, even from
a small amount of food.
APPETITE
Thirst and intense hunger with fever.
. addictions.
Desire for sour.
. disgust.
To bread.
STOMACH
Exhausting aching pain extending from throat to left
hip area. Soreness and bruised feeling in the intestines.
Pain in the groin, extending downward, and heaviness in the limbs when walking.
Neuralgic pain in the lower abdomen, with pressure in the vagina.
ANUS AND RECTUM
Diarrhea with constant urging; offensive, loose, mushy stools;
intense pain in the hemorrhoids. Violent watery diarrhea.
URINARY SYSTEM
Frequent passing of light urine, with boring, spasmodic
pain in the kidneys; shootings in the stomach; dry mouth; strong thirst,
especially in the evening and at night; glucosuria; severe wasting (acute
developed diabetes). Urine copious, persistent urge; feeling like
the bladder is distended.
WOMEN'S
Uterine lesions. Leucorrhea: thick, purulent, offensive, lumpy.
Weakness, night sweats, aversion to sex (vaginitis).
Ulceration of the cervix (scirrhus), with ichorous, corrosive discharge;
downward pain in uterus; sharp, shooting stitches, trembling.
Ulceration with burning in vulva and thighs; lumbago and
boring pain in uterus.
MENSTRUATION
Menstruation comes a week earlier than usual; constricting pain in right
ovary; downward pain in the pelvic region, tiring, extremely
severe (provoking fainting) pain in the sacrum,
extending down the thighs; discharge scanty, very dark,
lasting three days instead of five. During menstruation occur:
colic, headache, kidney pain, general malaise, hypochondria.
Dysmenorrhea.
MUSCLES
Complete paralysis of the right deltoid muscle.
Pseudohypertrophic paralysis.
NECK
stiffness in the neck; head thrown back.
Stiffness of the muscles of the right half of the neck and the right shoulder joint.
BACK
Dull, aching pain in the shoulder joints and along the back; numbness and pain
as if from weariness, extending up and down the back and towards the head.
The chill extends up the back and over the whole body.
Dorsal dryness.
LIMB
Paralysis of the limbs, with sensation of burning heat, or with chilliness.
Aching pain in the limbs and all over the body. Numbness with prickling.
. Arms. Complete paralysis of the right deltoid muscle. Pain and numbness
in the left side of the chest and in the left arm. Lead heaviness in the hands, not
allowing you to play the piano. In the evenings, the arms and hands swell, become
painful and hard. Great weakness, especially in the wrists and
brushes.
. Legs. Trembling in legs; legs fail when walking. Sciatica with severe
stiffness. Corns.
INFECTIONS
The medicine appears to be helpful in cases of rabies and tetanus.
MODALITIES
. Worse. From movement; walk. When lifting up. From dampness. cold,
in cold weather, from cold wind. When the weather changes. At 2 am and
at 14-15 pm.
RELATIONSHIPS
In cases of poisoning, the victim should be transferred to artificial
breath.
Bromine and chlorine serve as an antidote.
If the poison is in a stab wound, rubbing tobacco or salt into it partially
neutralizes the action of the poison.
Curare serves as an antidote for strychnine and rabies poison.
Compatibility:
after Arnica (paralysis due to injury),
after Belladonna (paralysis due to epistaxis).
Curare well followed after Baryta carb. in debility in the elderly.
Should be compared:
Nux vomica, Aranea diadema (fever worse in wet weather);
Crotalus (feeling of blows in the region of the cerebellum);
Sepia, Lyesinum, Nux vomica, Sulfur (yellow-brown spots on the skin).
Curare is a generalized name for potent poisons obtained by evaporating water extracts from certain tropical plants. These poisons have long been used by the natives living in South America to poison arrowheads in military operations and during hunting. They knew the dosages required for instant death or temporary immobilization if the enemy was needed alive.
Curare poison, once in the blood, has a nerve-paralytic effect on the body. First, nerve impulses are blocked, muscle paralysis occurs. Then the respiratory system fails, the skin turns blue, the liver becomes inflamed - and as a result, death occurs. When meat with a deadly potion enters the stomach, there are no consequences, that is, animals killed by a poisoned arrow can be eaten. Moreover, their meat, according to the natives, becomes more tasty and tender.
The composition of this deadly poison for Europeans has long remained a mystery. The mention of him caused a terrifying thrill. Different tribes get curare poison from different plants and even compositions. There are several varieties of the deadly potion, which have different effects on the body and are stored in different conditions. For example, curare - poison from Chondrodendron tomentosum - acts very quickly. They kept it in hollow tubes made of stems. The poison from Strychnos toxifera is slower acting, similar to strychnine. It was kept in clay pots.
Chondrodendron tomentosum is a vine belonging to the Loganiaceae family and widespread in South America. Its lignified stem can reach 10 cm in cross section. The leaves of the vine are large (up to 20 cm), heart-shaped, with clearly visible veins. The upper side of the leaves is smooth, and the lower side is covered with a light pile. Flowers dioecious, small, greenish-cream, collected in inflorescences. The fruits are small (up to 2 mm), oblong, tapering downwards.
The first mention of the plant is found in the records of the Spanish priest d'Acuña, which were made by him in 1693. Samples of poison and manufacturing technology were brought to Europe by the French scientist Charles Marie de la Cordamen (from the expedition, of course, they did not give curare themselves. The poison had to be steal and peep how the natives make it.
Leaves, roots and stems of Chondrodendron tomentosum were crushed, filled with water and
cooked on low heat for a while until the mass thickened. At the same time, she was constantly stirred. Sometimes the blood of poisonous frogs or other animals was added to the brew. Less strong poison had a light color, it was used for hunting. More effective and deadly was a thick sticky poison with a resin smell. It was used against enemies, processing thorns, which were then blown out of pipes. Only the shaman of the tribe had the right to make curare-poison, for disobedience death was assumed.
The active substance of curare poison is D-tubocurarine, an active alkaloid. If it is used in microdoses, then it is able to have a therapeutic effect. This substance is used in the treatment of dropsy, urolithiasis, insanity, fever, etc. It can also be used externally in case of severe bruises in the form of compresses. Indian shamans have known about this for a long time and skillfully used and continue to use curare poison.
Chondrodendron tomentosum
Taxon: Lunosemyannikovye family ( Meniapormaceae)
Other names: marsh chondrodendron, curare, velvet leaf, pareira brava
English: сurare, ourari, woorari, grieswurzel, pareira brava, antinupa, velvet leaf
Botanical description of chondrodendron felt
This is a large woody vine of the South American rainforest, very similar to the vine. The stiff stem of the vine at the base can reach a thickness of 10 cm, and a length of up to 30 meters.
The leaves are large alternating heart-shaped leaves 10-20 cm in diameter, leaf petioles 5 to 15 cm long. The leaf blade is smooth on top with pronounced veins, and below has a velvety surface of tiny whitish hairs, which gave another name to the plant - velvet leaf(velvet leaf).
Chondrodendron has both male and female flowers, small, greenish white. Flowers are collected in clusters.
The fruits of felt chondrodendron formed on female flowers are edible, bitter-sweet, fleshy, oval, narrowed towards the base, 1-2 mm long.
Distribution of chondrodendron felt
Felt chondrodendron is native to the Amazon River basin in Central and South America.
It grows in Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Guiana, Ecuador, Panama and Colombia.
The chemical composition of chondrodendron felt
Chondrodendron felt is a rich source of alkaloids. The main chemical compounds found in this plant include: chondrocuranine (chondrocurarine), chondrocurine (chondrocurine), chondodin (chondodine), chondrofoline (chondrofoline), curine (curine), cycleanine (cycleanine), D-tubocurarine (D-tubocurarine), L -tubocurarine (L-tubocurarine), isochondrodendrin (isochondrodendrine), L-bebyrin (L-bebeerine), N-benzyl-phthalimide (N-benzyl-phthalimide), norcycleanine (norcycleanine), pelonin (pelonine), tomentocurine (tomentocurine) and tubocurarine.
From the history
The chronicler of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella Peter Martyr d "Anghera wrote about arrows poisoned with curare for the first time in 1516 in his book De Orbe Novo. It was a mixture of facts, fantasy and mysticism.
In 1594, Sir Walter Raleigh visited Venezuela, and in his Discovery of the Large, Rich and Beautiful Empire of Guiana, he mentions poisoned arrows. One of his assistants calls the poison "ourari".
Wars between the British, Spanish and Portuguese until the 18th century hampered the further study of curare.
Physician Edward Bancroft spent five years in South America and brought curare samples from there. Using these samples, Sir Benjamin Brodie experimented on animals. After injecting curare with poison, he kept the lungs of small animals inflated with bellows to keep them alive.
In 1814, Charles Waterton demonstrated the effects of curare on three donkeys. The first donkey died after being stabbed in the shoulder blade. For the second donkey, a tourniquet was tied around his front leg, curare was introduced into the leg below the tourniquet. While the tourniquet was in place, the donkey was alive and active, but shortly after the tourniquet was removed, the donkey died. The third donkey, after being injected with curare poison, was completely resuscitated with the help of furs.
In 1846, Claude Bernard published details of his experiments on frogs. He proved that curare acts on neuromuscular junctions (synapse).
Around the turn of the century, Harold King isolated d-tubocurarine from a sample of curare.
poison curare
Chondrodendron tomentosum) or poisonous strychnos ( Strychnos toxifera) are one of the main plants used by Indians in the Amazon to make poison. curare for arrowheads and darts. The name curare is formed from two words of the Indians of the Tupi tribe - “bird” and “kill”, literally translated “liquid that quickly kills birds”.Different Indian tribes use their own recipes to make curare poison. For example, the Indians of Venezuela and Guiana took poisonous strychnos as the main ingredient of the poison, and the natives of Peru, Ecuador and Brazil - felt chondrodendron. In both cases, as a rule, curare poison is a mixture of various plants and snake or frog venom.
The classic method of preparing curare poison by the Indians of South America involves the extraction of crushed leaves, stems and roots of felt chondrodendron over low heat, sometimes with the addition of the blood of poisonous animals and reptiles (for example, poisonous frogs). The boiling mass was constantly stirred, bringing it to a thickening. The lighter curare poison, necessary for hunting small animals, was light, and the strongest was a dark brown or black mass of sticky or even almost solid consistency, with a distinct resinous odor. Long thorns or darts were lubricated with curare poison, which were blown out of wind pipes with force to hit the target.
Curare is not actually a real poison, it is a powerful muscle relaxant.
Curare poison blocks the acetylcholine nicotinic receptors of the striated muscles of the diaphragm, and, consequently, the muscles responsible for breathing, they become so relaxed that the lungs cease to function and death occurs from asphyxia (breathing arrest), with almost undisturbed consciousness.
In order for a deadly poison to begin its harmful effect, it must enter the bloodstream; for poisoning, a scratch on the skin is enough. Death from respiratory arrest in birds and small animals occurs within a few minutes, and in larger mammals after 20 minutes or more.
Animals poisoned with curare poison can be safely eaten, it is not absorbed in the stomach.
Making curare poison was the prerogative of the shaman of the tribe, violation of this rule was punishable by the immediate death of the offender.
In case of poisoning with a very small dose, it is possible to return to life by maintaining artificial respiration (the poison is excreted by the kidneys).
Antidote for curare can be any cholinesterase inhibitors, such as neostigmine and physostigmine.
The use of chondrodendron felt alkaloids in medicine
The active alkaloid that causes the muscle relaxant effect of chondrodendron felt is D-tubocurarine. It was first isolated in 1897, and received in the form of a dosage form in 1935. In 1938, a purified standard muscle relaxant, intocostrin (a mixture of plant alkaloids Chondrodendron tomentosum).
Since curare poison, made from the root Chondrodendron tomentosum and packaged in bamboo tubes for lubricating arrows, had the strongest pharmacological effect, the main alkaloid of chondrodendron felt was called tubocurarine (aka tubarine).
Tubocurarine alkaloid is an agent that blocks nerve impulses that control muscles. Such a blockage leads to muscle paralysis: first of all, the toes and hands and eyelids stop working, then the nerve endings responsible for vision and hearing are paralyzed, then the paralysis affects the face, neck, arms and legs, and finally death occurs from respiratory paralysis. . During agony, inflammation of the liver occurs, and the skin acquires a characteristic bluish hue.
In medicine, purified curare containing a mixture of alkaloids (preparations curarine, intocostrin) has been used since 1942. At the Montreal Homeopathic Hospital on January 23, 1942, Griffith and Johnson (Griffith H.R., Johnson G.E.) first used tubocurarine when performing appendectomy. Then doctors began to use a solution of the alkaloid tubocurarine chloride (the drug is also known as "tubarin"). Tubocurarine hydrochloride is used in surgery to relax skeletal muscles during surgery. Tubocurarine is non-toxic, its action as a general anesthetic and muscle relaxant in various types of operations lasts about 90 minutes (during this time, breathing is controlled using medical equipment).
Tubocurarine chloride is used to treat tetanus and convulsions from strychnine poisoning.
D-tubocurarine is used in physiological practice to immobilize experimental animals.
D-tubocurarine is being studied for its ability to block the hormone serotonin, reduce vomiting, ease withdrawal symptoms, and its calming effect.
D-tubocurarine also stimulates the release of histamine, which causes the blood vessel walls to relax due to relaxation.
Intravenous administration of D-tubocurarine causes rapid muscle relaxation, first affecting the legs, ears and eyes, then the neck and limbs, and finally breathing.
Pharmacological properties of chondrodendron felt
Chondrodendron felt has biological activity as:
antibacterial
antiseptic
wound healing
anti-inflammatory
anticalculous (prevents the formation of stones in the kidneys)
menstrual stimulant
Traditional use of chondrodendron felt
Since the chemicals of chondrodendron tomentum, which have strong muscle relaxant activity, are not absorbed in the stomach, oral ingestion of the plant extract is considered safe.
Indian shamans have long learned to use the diuretic properties of curare and gave microdoses of curare to patients for medicinal purposes, easing attacks of violent insanity, and also used it for dropsy, urolithiasis and, externally, with severe bruises, in the form of compresses.
In Brazil and Peru, a decoction of chondrodendron root is used to increase urination, reduce fever, and to stimulate menstruation. Chondrodendron is also used to treat edema, kidney stones, and testicular inflammation.
In Brazil, the leaves are also crushed and used externally to treat venomous snake bites.
The British author Maude Grieve wrote in his book "A Modern Herbal" (first published in 1931) that chondrodendron felt acts as an antiseptic and recommended it for the treatment of leucorrhoea (white or yellowish discharge from the vagina), chronic inflammation of the urinary tract. paths, kidney stones, rheumatism, jaundice, edema, gonorrhea.
In , curare is used to treat inflammation of the urinary tract and an enlarged prostate.
homeopathic remedy Pareira brava(pareira) was introduced into homeopathy by the famous homeopathic doctor Dr. Fox. Its powerful and anti-febrile effect is due to the presence of pelosin, chondodendrin, chondodrin and buxin alkaloids in the plant.
Indications for use
1. Renal colic, urinary retention.
2. Bladder stones.
3. Cystitis with dysuric phenomena (pus and mucus in the urine).
4. Prostate adenoma with periodic pain in the anal and sacral regions.
note that American manufacturers of herbal supplements in the production of dietary supplements can use completely different plants with the common name "kuare".
Chondrodendron tomentosum)
Cissampelos pareira ( Cissampelos pareira)
Strychnos poisonous ( Strychnos toxifera)
Abute large-leaved ( Abuta grandifolia) and etc.
These plants have different chemical composition and biological activity. For example, dietary supplements from curare, which are recommended for, consist of an extract Abuta grandifolia, other curaregenic plants do not have a hypoglycemic effect.
Used Books
1. Sykes K. Harold Griffith Memorial Lecture. The Griffith legacy. Can J Anaesth 1993; 40:351-74
2. Brodie B.C. Further experiments and observations on the action of poisons on the animal system. Phil Trans R Soc Lond 1812;102: 205-27
3. Crul J.A. Relaxant drugs: from native drugs to the selective agents of today. Acta Anaesthiol Scand 1982; 26:406-15
4. Taylor, L. Herbal Secrets of the Rainforest. 1998
5. Smith WDA. Waterton and Wouralia. Br J Anaesth 1983; 55:221-5
6. King H. Curare alkaloids: 1, tubocurarine. J Chem Soc 1935: 1381-89
7. Humble R.M. The Gill-Merrill Expedition. Penultimate chapter in the curare story. Anesthesiology 1982;57:5159-26
8. Wintersteiner O, Dutcher JD. Curare alkaloids from Chondrodendron tomentosum. Science 1943;97: 467-70
9. Bennett A.E. Curare: a preventive of traumatic complication in convulsive shock therapy. Am J Psychiatry1994;151 (suppl): 249-58
10. Better A.M. The civilizing of curare. Anesth Analg (Curr Res) 1977;56: 305-19
11. Gillies D, Wynands JE. Harold Randall Griffith, MD, CM, the pioneer of the use of muscle relaxants in anaesthesia. Br J Anaesth 1986;58: 943-5
12. Griffith HR, Johnson GE. The use of curare in general anaesthesia. Anesthesiology 1942;3: 418-20
13. Gray TC, Halton J. A milestone in anaesthesia? (d-tubocurarine chloride). Proc R Soc Med 1946;39: 400-10
14. Ing HR. The curariform activity of onium salts. Physiol Rev 1936;16:527-44
15. Barlow RB, Ing HR. Curare-like action of polymethylene bisquaternary ammonium salts. Br J Pharmacol1948;3: 289-304
Photos and illustrations of chondrodendron felt
Curare is a plant poison. The famous South American arrow toxin became known to Europeans in the 16th century thanks to the campaigns in the New World of the Spanish and then the Portuguese conquerors. It is believed that in the same century he came to Europe. But its chemical composition, the effect on the body, the plants from which this unique product can be obtained, were fully investigated only at the beginning of the last century.
Mysterious selva
Curare is a poison, the secret of which the Indians carefully concealed from the conquerors, which gave rise to many legends surrounding this mysterious toxin. Moreover, the vegetation along the rivers of South America, the Amazon and the Orinoco, is incredibly rich. Studies have shown that in these areas, on a plot of only 2,000 square meters, about 500 different plants belonging to 50 families grew. The selva itself, the natives with poisoned arrows, the mysterious poison from which they died a strange death - everything terrified the colonialists.
Plants - suppliers of ingredients
Curare is a poison, which, as it turned out later, can be obtained not only from poisonous strychnos (strychnos toxifera), but also from other plants. The alkaloids contained in at least two of its varieties are found in plants of the menisperm or moon-seed family, such as abuta and chondrodendron, telytoxicum and sorrel-leaved kirkazon. The necessary components for curare poison are obtained from several types of chilibuha - deadly, Jobertiana and devilish. But the raw material base for the manufacture of this toxin, which is used in medicine, has significantly expanded with the discovery of Zola capers.
emetic nut
Until now, the natives of the South Amazon prefer to hunt with this poison. It is not surprising that the strongest composition is made in the area of \u200b\u200bthe Solemoe River (the name translates as "poison"), a tributary of the Amazon.
The Indians of South America, during their colonization by the Spanish conquistadors, obtained their poison for arrows and spears from strychnos. These are trees and vines. The evergreen tree from which curare poison is obtained is called the strychnine tree, or emetic nut, or chilibuha. It is this that serves as the source of the alkaloid strychnine.
Characteristic container
We must immediately make a reservation that the specified product is sold in various packages. And according to what it has circulation, the poison is called - potted, pipe and pumpkin, or pot-, tubo- and kalabash-curare. Each package corresponds to a certain composition and the plant from which curare (poison) is prepared. So, potted, stored in small pots of unbaked clay, is made from the bark of the castelnean chilibuha. It is used for bird hunting. Small arrows cut from the veins of a palm leaf are dipped in this toxin and blown out with force from a bamboo tube.
The flight of such an arrow is inaudible for a bird, and there are no misses, because it is enough just to hit a feathered arrow with a feathered arrow, and it falls down like a stone. To hunt larger animals, different arrows and bows are required, and the poison must be more potent. Such curare poison is obtained from a tree called chondrodendron, which is a large woody liana. Trubocurare is so named because it was previously only stored in corked bamboo tubes, and is now even exported in tin cans. The strongest poison described, pumpkin, as the name implies, is stored in small pumpkins and is made from poisonous chilibuha.
Specific impact
How does this mysterious toxin work and why do the Indians of South America eat animals killed with it without fear, which terrified the Europeans? At the slightest scratch with an arrow or other weapon smeared with arrow poison, it penetrates the bloodstream and blocks the muscles responsible for breathing. As a result, death occurs from suffocation. Now both the tree itself, from which curare poison is extracted, and the composition of this priceless toxin have been studied in detail. The studied actions exerted by it on the organism of animals allowed scientists to find antidotes (neostigmine and physostigmine).
Indispensable in medicine
The poison of trychnos toxifera is actively used in medicine. Claude Bernard in 1844 proved the peripheral effect of arrow poison, the central nervous system was not affected. Thus, this toxin turned out to be an invaluable drug for carrying out the most complex operations requiring muscle relaxation - complete relaxation of the muscles.
In the 20s of the last century, the Italian Bove managed to obtain a synthetic poison - gallamine. It is also used to treat Parkinson's disease. Not dangerous for the human gastrointestinal tract and food prepared from animals killed with the poison strychnos toxifera. On the contrary, food prepared from such living creatures is considered a delicacy, because it is unusually tender and fresh.
Treasures of South America
Thus, among the priceless treasures brought to Europe from South America, such as cocoa and potatoes, tobacco and tomatoes, sweet hot peppers, curare poison can rightly be counted. The tree from which this priceless product is obtained does not only grow in the tropical forests of South America. Its range extends to South and East Asia, North Australia and Africa. The fruits of this tree are harvested after their full ripening in October-November.
aconine plant
In addition to trees and vines that serve as suppliers of a rare toxin, there is also a flower that replaces curare poison. Its name is aconite, or wrestler. A very strong poison is extracted from its roots, with which the Indians of the Digaroa tribe (India) lubricate the tips of weapons in the same way and for the same purposes. The root is very poisonous - in our country, among a dozen names, there is also a wolf slayer. And the ancient Greek legend says that a flower grew from the poisonous saliva of Cerberus, which, at the sight of sunlight (the 12th feat of Hercules), began to break out of the powerful hands of the hero, pouring furious foam all around near the city of Akoni. According to the poisoning effect on the animal's body, a parallel is drawn between it and the poison of strychnos toxifera. Even 1/5 milligram of this poison is enough to cause severe poisoning.
Other poisonous plants
To these two plant poisons, you can add the toxin of cornflower, hemlock and larkspur. All of them resemble the effect that curare poison has on the body. From what tree can you still get this toxin? The strongest poison is obtained from a large woody liana with a stiff trunk reaching 10 cm in diameter - strychnos toxifera schomb. It is used to make pumpkin curare. The strongest poison has a consistency close to solid. All poisons are prepared on fire, and only sorcerers get this right. Of course, all this applies only to wild tribes. But the most famous supplier of ingredients is the chilibuha - a tropical deciduous, no more than 15 meters high, evergreen tree. Curare poison, shrouded in secrets and legends, known throughout the world, in most cases is obtained from it.
Curare poison is a legendary substance that was feared by all, without exception, the colonizers of South America in the 16th century. It was enough to get the slightest scratch from the arrows of the natives to die a strange and mysterious death. Over time, the secret of curare, which was hidden by the locals, was revealed and now this substance is used to save lives, not take them.
Composition and application of curare
The South American Guianan Indians have long learned to use the flora that thrives in the Amazon to make it easier for them to hunt animals and birds. Plants such as the liana Chondrodendron tomentosum and the evergreen tree Strychnos toxifera helped them in this. These are the 2 main sources of curare, however, very often compositions of toxins obtained from other poisonous plants and animals that had a similar effect were added to the mixture.
The basis of the poison was made from crushed parts of the plant, which were boiled over low heat. After adding all the necessary components, a poisonous adhesive mixture was obtained with the color, smell and consistency of the resin. Small arrows made from palm leaves were smeared with it, and they were sent to the target with the help of a bamboo tube.
Investigation of poison by Europeans
Almost 100 years after the Spanish and Portuguese conquerors first entered the territory of the Guianna Indians, the English traveler Walter Raleigh was able to see and test the effects of curare without death.
In 1617 he entered the Orinoco jungle with a native guide. Noticing an unusual way of hunting and a weapon that killed animals even with the slightest injury, he tried to independently explore the curare. A couple of drops of poison that got into the blood led to a prolonged loss of consciousness.
A little later, the Frenchman Charles Marie de la Condamin visited the Amazon basin. He was able to steal samples of the poison and the technology of its preparation from the Indians, and then bring the secret of curare to Europe. But until the middle of the 19th century, scientists could not accurately explain the action of the poison and find out from which tree it was obtained. Only Claude Bernard, having received a sample of curare from Napoleon III, was able to give the first answers to these questions.
And since 1942, thanks to the Canadians Harald Griffith and Enid Johnson, it was found out that curare is a poison that can save lives. Thanks to their research, muscle relaxants appeared in physicians.
Types of curare
There are 3 varieties of this substance. They were prepared from different compositions of toxins and used for various purposes. These subspecies of curare are known as pipe curare, pot curare and gourd curare, reflecting the storage methods. Only tribal shamans had the right to make them. All other natives only used this tool for hunting and military operations.
Curare is divided into subspecies as follows:
- Tubo-curare is a pipe poison. It was stored in hollow bamboo stems 25 cm long. This is the main type of toxin, it was prepared from the root of Chondrodendron tomentosum. The Indians used this poison to lubricate arrows - hitting a small amount of the substance was enough to kill small animals.
- Pot curare. This species gave the poison its name. "Curare" translates as "Bird Poison". It was this type of toxin that was stored in clay pots that was used to hunt feathered animals. It was not used for lubricating arrows. In order not to scare away the birds with whistling and air vibrations, the Indians used small darts blown through a tube. They silently wounded and quickly killed the prey of the hunter. This curare poison is obtained from Strychnos castelniaeana and varieties
- Calabash curare. It was this poison that terrified the Spaniards of the 16th century. This is a military version of the poison, which was stored in pumpkin fruits. It was used against large and dangerous animals, as well as people. This curare was applied to arrows and spears. One scratch left by such a weapon was enough to paralyze and quickly but painfully kill any enemy. The bark of Strychnos toxifera was used to prepare this poison.
The Guianan Indians always knew exactly when and what kind of poison to use. By controlling the dosage and composition of curare, they could simply immobilize the enemy or instantly kill him.
Why is curare so dangerous?
If you find a tree from which curare poison is obtained and taste any part of this plant, then it is unlikely that you will be poisoned. Moreover, even after all the manipulations of the shaman, the contents of pots, pumpkins and pipes can be almost safely eaten in any quantity.
The secret is that the poison does not enter the body through the mucous membranes. Therefore, poisoned prey can be safely eaten, enjoying curare as a spice that turns meat into a delicacy, giving it tenderness and a fresh aroma.
To have an effect on the body, the toxin must enter directly into the circulatory system. It is in this case that tubocurarine, the main active ingredient of curare, has a paralyzing effect.
The action of the poison is aimed at relaxing and paralyzing the muscles. At the same time, the central nervous system is not affected, that is, the affected animal and person continue to feel and perceive everything that happens to him.
Death usually occurs because the muscles of the respiratory system relax. Asphyxiation can only be prevented with artificial respiration. It must be continued until the kidneys remove most of the curare from the body.
The secret of such an unusual effect of the poison lies in the fact that it is not muscles or nerves that are affected. Curare only blocks the signal from neurons at the moment of its transmission to muscle fibers. Thus, the orders of the brain simply do not reach the "addressee".
The use of the substance in medicine
Thanks to numerous studies, scientists were eventually able to find substances that can suppress the effects of "bird venom". They are called Neostigmine and Physostigmine. You can also use any cholinesterase inhibitors for these purposes. But the use of curare for medicinal purposes has become much more interesting for physicians.
This idea is not new. South American Indian shamans often used curare for compresses and instead of diuretics. Modern scientists use poison to relax the muscles, which makes it easier to carry out surgical operations with increased muscle tone.
In addition, in the 1920s, the Italian scientist Bove was able to create a less dangerous variety of curare - the substance gallamine. The action of this poison is easier to control and can be used with less risk to the health of patients. Gallamine is now a well-known treatment for Parkinson's disease.
The efforts of modern physicians are aimed at creating tablets that have the effect of curare. Elatin and Condelfin are taken orally for the treatment of tetanus, hyperkinesis, multiple sclerosis and other diseases. At the same time, paralysis of the respiratory system occurs last, so the danger to human life during the treatment course is minimal.
