Bufotoxin

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Class of chemical compounds

title: "Bufotoxin" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["alpha-amino-acids", "amphibian-toxins", "causes-of-death"] description: "Class of chemical compounds" topic_path: "general/alpha-amino-acids" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bufotoxin" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Class of chemical compounds ::

Bufotoxins are a family of toxic steroid lactones or substituted tryptamines of which some are toxic. They occur in the parotoid glands, skin, and poison of many toads (Bufonidae family) and other amphibians, and in some plants and mushrooms. The exact composition varies greatly with the specific source of the toxin.

Composition

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Bufotoxin.svg" caption="Chemical structure of one of the main components of bufotoxin, a conjugate of bufagin with suberylarginine. This component is itself sometimes called bufotoxin."] ::

Bufotoxins can contain 5-MeO-DMT, bufagins, bufalin, bufotalin, bufotenin, bufothionine, dehydrobufotenine, epinephrine, norepinephrine, and serotonin. Some authors have also used the term bufotoxin to describe the conjugate of a bufagin with suberylarginine.

The toxic substances found in toads can be divided by chemical structure in two groups:

  1. bufadienolides, which are cardiac glycosides (e.g., bufotalin, bufogenin), are compounds that may be fatal if consumed.
  2. tryptamine-related substances (e.g., bufotenin), are sought after for entheogenic and/or recreational purposes by some individuals. However, the practice of using these substances derived from animals for spiritual experiences or responsible drug use may raise ethical concerns about the potential suffering inflicted on the animal.

Species

Toads known to secrete bufotoxins.

Toads frequently "milked"

Despite being a frequent target for milking, these toads still carry cardiotoxic bufotoxins which have been linked to deaths.

Other toads

The effects of the bufotoxins in these toads are not well understood.

Extraction

Extract from the skin of certain Asian toads, such as Bufo bufo gargarizans and Bufo melanostictus, is often found in certain Chinese folk remedies. The Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China (ChP) considers the two species valid sources of toad poison (; ), and requires the dry product to contain at least 6% of cinobufagin and resibufogenin combined by weight. The extract is obtained by squeezing the parotoid glands of caught, washed toads for a white venom and drying; the final dried poison is usually brown, with a chunk or flake form.

Human poisoning

Poisoning from toad toxin is rare but can kill. It can occur when someone drinks toad soup, eats toad meat or toad eggs, or swallows live toads. It can also happen when someone deliberately takes commercial substances made with toad toxins. These go under names including "Kyushin", "Chan Su" (marketed as a painkiller, topical anesthetic, or cardiac treatment), "Rockhard", and "Love Stone" (marketed as aphrodisiacs).

"Chan Su" (literally "toad venom") is often adulterated with standard painkillers, such as paracetamol, promethazine, and diclofenac. It may be ingested or injected. Potentially toxic compounds include bufagins, catecholamines and indolealkylamines. Venom may also contain bufotenine, a tryptamine derivative alkaloid found in various toads' secretions, and the bufadienolides resibufogenin, cinobufagin and bufalin.

Symptoms of intoxication

Symptoms may vary depending on certain factors such as the size and age of the victim. Other than the first, more benign symptoms (such as a tingling or burning sensation in the eyes, mucous membranes, or in exposed wounds), the most frequently described symptoms in the medical literature are:

One epileptic episode caused by bufotoxins was observed in a five-year-old child, minutes after they had placed a Bufo alvarius in their mouth. The child was successfully treated with diazepam and phenobarbital.

In extreme cases following ingestion of mucus or skin of the toad, death generally occurs within 6 and 24 hours. Victims surviving past 24 hours generally will recover.

References

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References

  1. (March 1957). "Biosynthesis of cardiotonic sterols from cholesterol in the toad, Bufo marinus". Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics.
  2. (October 2014). "Toxic and Hallucinogenic Mushroom Poisoning: A Handbook for Physicians and Mushroom Hunters". Van Nostrand Reinhold.
  3. (1986). "Bufadienolide aus Samen von Helleborus odorus". Planta Medica.
  4. (December 1967). "Pharmacology and toxicology of toad venom". Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences.
  5. (2013). "5-Hydroxytryptamine and Related Indolealkylamines". Springer Berlin.
  6. (2015). "中华人民共和国药典". 中国医药科技出版社.
  7. Hitt M, Ettinger DD (5 June 1986). [https://www.nejm.org/doi/abs/10.1056/NEJM198606053142320 "Toad toxicity"] {{subscription. ''N Engl J Med''; '''314'''(23). 1517. {{Doi. 10.1056/NEJM198606053142320.
  8. (2009-07-01). "Sudden death associated with intravenous injection of toad extract". Forensic Science International.
  9. (2020). "Toad Poisoning: Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes.". Therapeutics and Clinical Risk Management.
  10. (29 June 2015). "These Men Died Trying to Achieve Epic Erections".
  11. (March 2007). "Life-threatening episode after ingestion of toad eggs: a case report with literature review.". Emergency Medicine Journal.
  12. (August 1997). "The natural history of amphibian skin secretions, their normal functioning and potential medical applications.". Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society.
  13. (October 2005). "Alkaloids from amphibian skin: a tabulation of over eight-hundred compounds.". Journal of Natural Products.

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