"you poison everyone, including yourself (assuming the murderer to be one of the house party)? It was Sylvia herself who picked the foxglove leaves and Dr Lloyd wonders if the intended victim was Sir Ambrose, who was prescribed drugs for his heart condition. Miss Marple latches onto this clue and finds the solution – Sir Ambrose's drug was digitalin. He planted the foxglove seed among the sage a long time before, and mild poisoning ensued at the dinner party, but somehow he fed his ward further doses at the same time from his own drug, thereby killing her but making"
"his medical colleagues (and the Dean was treated with Digitalis Root not Leaves) . This myth has been created by authors not going back to primary sources but instead copying and then embellishing the work of others. See ""Withering and The Foxglove; the making of a myth"" by D.M. Krikler Br Heart J 1985 54: 256-257. Mother Hutton Mother Hutton was an 18th-century British pharmacist and herbalist responsible for the discovery of digitalis and its essential use in the curing of heart problems. She is sometimes referred to as Mrs. Hutton, Old mother Hutton and ""the old woman from Shropshire""."
"beta blockers, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, and the calcium channel blocking agents. As new pharmacotherapeutic agents arise, the use of digitalis preparations is expected to continue to decline. There are also other commercial uses for ""Digitalis lanata"" other than heart conditions. For example, in South America the powdered leaves are used to relieve asthma, as sedatives, and as diuretics. In India it is included in an ointment that contains digitalis glycosides used to treat wounds and burns. Digitalis lanata Digitalis lanata (often called woolly foxglove or Grecian foxglove) is a species of foxglove. It gets its name due to the texture"
"nectar within. The fruit is a capsule which splits open at maturity to release the numerous tiny 0.1-0.2 mm seeds. The three subspecies of ""Digitalis purpurea"" are: Due to the presence of the cardiac glycoside digitoxin, the leaves, flowers and seeds of this plant are all poisonous to humans and some animals and can be fatal if ingested. Extracted from the leaves, this same compound, whose clinical use was pioneered by William Withering, is used as a medication for heart failure. He recognized it ""reduced dropsy"", increased urine flow and had a powerful effect on the heart. Unlike the purified"
"Digitalis ciliata Digitalis ciliata, the ciliate foxglove or hairy foxglove, is a member of the genus ""Digitalis"", which is well known both for its beautiful bell-shaped flowers and use of the chemicals found mainly in the leaves and the seeds for treatment of heart conditions and potential anti-proliferative use in cancer. ""Digitalis ciliata"" is native to the Caucasus area. In these places, ""Digitalis ciliata"" can be found in meadows, pastures, on the edges of forests, and also on slopes, as it is indigenous to mountainous terrain. It can also be grown throughout the world, as long as there is warm"
"In other words, at precisely the right dosage, ""Digitalis"" toxin can cause the heart to beat more strongly. However, digitoxin, digoxin and several other cardiac glycosides, such as ouabain, are known to have steep dose-response curves, i.e., minute increases in the dosage of these drugs can make the difference between an ineffective dose and a fatal one. Symptoms of ""Digitalis"" poisoning include a low pulse rate, nausea, vomiting, and uncoordinated contractions of different parts of the heart, leading to cardiac arrest and finally death. The plant is popular as a garden subject, and numerous cultivars have been developed with a"
"folklorists and herbalists; herbalists have largely abandoned its use because of its narrow therapeutic index and the difficulty of determining the amount of active drug in herbal preparations. Once the usefulness of digitalis in regulating the human pulse was understood, it was employed for a variety of purposes, including the treatment of epilepsy and other seizure disorders, which are now considered to be inappropriate treatments. Depending on the species, the digitalis plant may contain several deadly physiological and chemically related cardiac and steroidal glycosides. Thus, the digitalis plants have earned several, more sinister, names: dead man’s bells and witch's gloves."
"of Garden Merit. As the plant contains cardenolides, all parts are toxic. Its leaves contain 0.2% glycosides of the digitoxin-type and about 0,1% of the digoxin-type. Even so, the plant is not used in the production of cardiac glycosides. The Latin specific epithet ""grandiflora"" means “large flowered”. (Hybrid formula: ""Digitalis grandiflora"" Mill. × ""Digitalis purpurea"" L.). Digitalis grandiflora Digitalis grandiflora, the yellow foxglove, big-flowered foxglove, or large yellow foxglove, is a species of flowering plant in the genus ""Digitalis"", family Plantaginaceae (formerly Scrophulariaceae). It is native to southern Europe and Asia. In mountains it grows on warm, bushy slopes or"
"Mother Hutton Mother Hutton was an 18th-century British pharmacist and herbalist responsible for the discovery of digitalis and its essential use in the curing of heart problems. She is sometimes referred to as Mrs. Hutton, Old mother Hutton and ""the old woman from Shropshire"". As her last name alludes, she hailed from Shropshire, England. She was a successful practitioner of general medicine but became most famous for her ability to treat heart disease, kidney troubles and dropsy. She discovered the usefulness of the foxglove plant (""Digitalis purpura"") in treating the above. She experimented with the foxglove until she worked it"
"The cardiac glycosides are powerful drugs from plants including foxglove and lily of the valley. They include digoxin and digitoxin which support the beating of the heart, and act as diuretics. Polyphenols of several classes are widespread in plants. They include the colourful anthocyanins, hormone-mimicking phytoestrogens, and astringent tannins. In Ayurveda, the astringent rind of the pomegranate is used as a medicine, while polyphenol extracts from plant materials such as grape seeds are sold for their potential health benefits They have been continually studied in cell cultures for their different anti-cancer effects. Plants containing phytoestrogens have been used for centuries"
"purpurea"" extract containing cardiac glycosides for the treatment of heart conditions was first described in the English-speaking medical literature by William Withering, in 1785, which is considered the beginning of modern therapeutics. It is used to increase cardiac contractility (it is a positive inotrope) and as an antiarrhythmic agent to control the heart rate, particularly in the irregular (and often fast) atrial fibrillation. Digitalis is hence often prescribed for patients in atrial fibrillation, especially if they have been diagnosed with congestive heart failure. Digoxin was approved for heart failure in 1998 under current regulations by the Food and Drug Administration"
"containing digitalis plants. Drying does not reduce the toxicity of the plant. The plant is toxic to animals, including all classes of livestock and poultry, as well as felines and canines. Digitalis poisoning can cause heart block and either bradycardia (decreased heart rate) or tachycardia (increased heart rate), depending on the dose and the condition of one's heart. Notably, the electric cardioversion (to ""shock"" the heart) is generally not indicated in ventricular fibrillation in digitalis toxicity, as it can increase the dysrhythmia. Also, the classic drug of choice for ventricular fibrillation in emergency setting, amiodarone, can worsen the dysrhythmia caused"
"glycosides include digitoxigenin, gitoxigenin, digoxigenin, gitaloxigenin, and diginatigenin. The seeds of ""Digitalis ciliata"" are rich in the steroid glycoside Digitonin, along with other lipids that are important in cardiac treatments. Not only is ""Digitalis ciliata"" useful in the cardiac sector of medicine, but its anti-proliferative roles are also being looked into for its possible role in suppressing tumors. There may be evidence that the saponins found in this species have an anti-tumor effect by aiding in cell cycle arrest and cell death, or apoptosis. Digitalis ciliata Digitalis ciliata, the ciliate foxglove or hairy foxglove, is a member of the genus"
"William Withering William Withering FRS (17 March 1741 – 6 October 1799) was an English botanist, geologist, chemist, physician and the discoverer of digitalis. Withering was born in Wellington, Shropshire, the son of a surgeon. He trained as a physician and studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh Medical School. He worked at Birmingham General Hospital from 1779. The story is that he noticed a person with dropsy (swelling from congestive heart failure) improve remarkably after taking a traditional herbal remedy; Withering became famous for recognising that the active ingredient in the mixture came from the foxglove plant. The active"
"pharmacological forms, extracts of this plant did not frequently cause intoxication because they induced nausea and vomiting within minutes of ingestion, preventing the patient from consuming more. The main toxins in ""Digitalis"" spp. are the two chemically similar cardiac glycosides: digitoxin and digoxin. Like other cardiac glycosides, these toxins exert their effects by inhibiting the ATPase activity of a complex of transmembrane proteins that form the sodium potassium ATPase pump, (Na/K-ATPase). Inhibition of the Na/K-ATPase in turn causes a rise not only in intracellular Na, but also in calcium, which in turn results in increased force of myocardial muscle contractions."
"practiced as a folk herbalist in Shropshire, who used the plant as part of a polyherbal formulation containing over 20 different ingredients to successfully treat this condition. Withering deduced that Digitalis was the ""active"" ingredient in the formulation, and over the ensuing nine years he carefully tried out different preparations of various parts of the plant (collected in different seasons) documenting 156 cases where he had employed digitalis, and describing the effects and the best - and safest - way of using it. At least one of these cases was a patient for whom Erasmus Darwin had asked Withering for"
"Plantago major Plantago major (broadleaf plantain, white man's foot, or greater plantain) is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family Plantaginaceae. The plant is native to most of Europe and northern and central Asia, but has widely naturalised elsewhere in the world. ""Plantago major"" is one of the most abundant and widely distributed medicinal crops in the world. A poultice of the leaves can be applied to wounds, stings, and sores in order to facilitate healing and prevent infection. The active chemical constituents are aucubin (an anti-microbial agent), allantoin (which stimulates cellular growth and tissue regeneration), and mucilage"
"active constituents are the anti-microbial compound aucubin, the cell-growth promoter allantoin, a large amount of soothing mucilage, flavonoids, caffeic acid derivatives, and alcohols in the wax on the leaf surface. The root of plantain was also traditionally used to treat wounds, as well as to treat fever and respiratory infections. The mature plant contains pliable and tough fibres that can be used in survival situations to make small cords, fishing line, sutures, or braiding. Some cultivars are planted as ornamentals in gardens, including 'Rubrifolia' with purple leaves, and 'Variegata' with variegated leaves. Plantago major Plantago major (broadleaf plantain, white man's"
"including calactin, uscharin, calotoxin, and calotropin. These poisons work by inhibiting the sodium-potassium pump, and this effect is especially potent in the cardiac tissues. The cardiac effects can be applied for heart medication, and digitalis has been used as such. However, excessive doses can cause arrhythmia, which can lead to death. Given the potent bioactivity of calotropin, ""calotropis gigantea"" has been used as a folk medicine in India for many years, and has been reported to have a variety of uses. In Ayurveda, Indian practitioners have used the root and leaf of ""C. procera"" in asthma and shortness of breath"
"angiotensin levels and decreased sympathetic discharge, causing indirect vasodilation. Digoxin also affects the kidney by increased renal blood flow and increased glomerular filtration rate. A mild diuretic effect is seen only in heart failure. Derivatives of plants of genus ""Digitalis"" have a long history of medical use. The English physician William Withering is credited with the first published description of the use of digitalis derivatives in his 1785 book ""An Account of the Foxglove and some of its Medical Uses With Practical Remarks on Dropsy and Other Diseases"". It effects were first explained by Arthur Robertson Cushny. Charles Cullen admitted"
"has been used to relieve the pain associated with angina pectoris by acting as a selective coronary vasodilator. This can be done either orally or intramuscularly; however nausea is a major side effect regardless of how the medication is taken. Khellin Khellin has been used as an herbal folk medicine, with use in the Mediterranean dating back to Ancient Egypt, to treat a variety of maladies including: renal colic, kidney stones, coronary disease, bronchial asthma, vitiligo, and psoriasis. It is a major constituent of the plant ""Ammi visnaga"", also known as Bishop's Weed. Once purified, khellin exists as colorless, odorless,"
"cm large flowers with short petals and noticeable upper lip and lower lip. Bird pollination was documented (island populations of ""Phylloscopus""-species). The fruit is a capsule. ""Digitalis canariensis"" contains cardenolids (cardiac glycosids), which are toxic in the case of an overdose. Medical use is documented (primarily historic). For reasons of species conservation it is to refrain to influence wild stocks. ""Digitalis canariensis"" is endemic to the Canary Islands. It grows in woody areas (laurel forest, ""Erica arborea""-covered woods) of Tenerife, La Gomera and La Palma. Digitalis canariensis Digitalis canariensis is a member of the genus ""Digitalis"". It is commonly called"
"leaves, the leaflets of which are oblong, about 12 in. long and 1 in. broad, and somewhat truncate at the apex. The flowers are papilionaceous, of a purple color and arranged in panicles. The Goa powder or araroba is contained in the trunk, filling crevices in the heartwood. It is a morbid product in the tree, and yields to hot chloroform 50% of a substance known officially as chrysarobin. It occurs as a micro-crystalline, odorless, tasteless powder, very slightly soluble in either water or alcohol; it also occurs in rhubarb root. This complex mixture contains pure chrysarobin, di-chrysarobin methylether, di-chrysarobin."
"New England Journal of Medicine in January 2007, implicated pergolide, along with cabergoline, in causing valvular heart disease. As a result of this, the FDA removed pergolide from the United States market in March 2007. (Since cabergoline is not approved in the United States for Parkinson's Disease, but for hyperprolactinemia, the drug remains on the market. Treatment for hyperprolactinemia requires lower doses than that for Parkinson's Disease, diminishing the risk of valvular heart disease). Several plants contain serotonin together with a family of related tryptamines that are methylated at the amino (NH) and (OH) groups, are ""N""-oxides, or miss the"
"evidence of benefit. In China, ""Salvia miltiorrhiza"" (alone or combined with other Chinese herbal medicines) has been used for a variety of diseases such as angina pectoris, myocardial infarction, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and acute ischemic stroke. One TCM combination is a patent medicine called ""xuebijing"" which is given by injection; along with danshen it includes dang gui, safflower, Chinese peony, and Ligusticum striatum. Danshen has been shown to potentiate the effects of the common anticoagulation drug warfarin, leading to gross anticoagulation and bleeding complications. Therefore, danshen should be avoided by those using warfarin. Danshen causes interference when measuring digoxin levels when"
"Caribs traditionally made a tea from the leaves of the periwinkle plant (""Catharanthus roseus"") for use as a treatment for diabetes. Pharmacological companies today extract several medicinal alkaloids from periwinkle sap. The alkaloids derived from this plant include the anti-cancer agents vinblastine and vincristine. Other extracts from periwinkle help lower blood sugar in diabetics and are the basis for powerful tranquilizers. The powerful qualities of this plant were known to other cultures; it is known by the name ""Violette de Sorcier"" (Sorcerer's Violet) in France. As with many indigenous traditional medicines, the active ingredients of the plants used to make"
"local knowledge from one country and plant samples from another. The use of the plant as a cure for diabetes was the original stimulus for research. Effectiveness in the treatment of both Hodgkin's Disease and leukemia were discovered instead. Different countries are reported as having acquired different beliefs about the medical properties of the plant. The Hodgkin's lymphoma chemotherapeutic drug vinblastine is derivable from the rosy periwinkle. In 1994, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and WR Grace received a European patent on methods of controlling fungal infections in plants using a composition that included extracts from the neem tree (""Azadirachta"
"with different modes of action as drugs, both recreational and pharmaceutical. Medicines of different classes include atropine, scopolamine, and hyoscyamine (all from nightshade), the traditional medicine berberine (from plants such as ""Berberis"" and ""Mahonia""), caffeine (""Coffea""), cocaine (""Coca""), ephedrine (""Ephedra""), morphine (opium poppy), nicotine (tobacco), reserpine (""Rauwolfia serpentina""), quinidine and quinine (""Cinchona""), vincamine (""Vinca minor""), and vincristine (""Catharanthus roseus""). Anthraquinone glycosides are found in medicinal plants such as rhubarb, cascara, and Alexandrian senna. Plant-based laxatives made from such plants include senna, rhubarb and ""Aloe"". The cardiac glycosides are powerful drugs from medicinal plants including foxglove and lily of the valley."
"Digitalis grandiflora Digitalis grandiflora, the yellow foxglove, big-flowered foxglove, or large yellow foxglove, is a species of flowering plant in the genus ""Digitalis"", family Plantaginaceae (formerly Scrophulariaceae). It is native to southern Europe and Asia. In mountains it grows on warm, bushy slopes or areas left after logging. It is an herbaceous biennial or perennial plant with glossy green, veined leaves, whose flowering stem can reach a height of . The pale yellow bell-shaped flowers are spaced out on the stem, long and show a netted brown marking in their interior. This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award"
"many scientific interests, publishing ""A Botanical Materia Medica: Consisting of the Generic and Specific Characters of the Plants Used in Medicine and Diet, with Synonyms, and References to Medical Authors"" (1812) and ""Botanical Commentaries"" (1830). He died in Chesterfield on 30 April 1831 and was buried at St Mary's, Chesterfield. The plant ""Stokesia cyanea"" or ""Stokesia laevis"" (Asteraceae/Compositae) is named after him. Jonathan Stokes Jonathan Stokes (c. 1755 – 30 April 1831) was an English physician and botanist, a member of the Lunar Society of Birmingham, and an early adopter of the heart drug digitalis. Stokes was probably born in"
"similar to that of beta-carotene. Alpinia nutans Alpinia nutans, the shellflower, or dwarf cardamom, is a Southeast Asian plant of the ginger family (Zingiberaceae), and is a medicinal plant used to control hypertension, as diuretic, antifungal, and antiulcer. In Japan it is used as food preservative. Its flowers have a porcelain look, are shell-like and bloom prolifically on a 30-cm stalk. The flower's single fertile stamen has a massive anther. The globose white stigma of the pistil extends beyond the tip of the anther. The foliage of ""Alpinia nutans"" is evergreen in areas that do not have a hard freeze."
"warangalone, and auriculasin from the leaves. The major flavonoid component of the stem was found to be auriculasin (6). In addition, terpenoids such as epifriedinol and friedelin, and steroids (phytosterols) such as campesterol, β-sitosterol and stigmasterol are also identified from the stem and leaf. Millettia pachycarpa Millettia pachycarpa (synonym M. taiwaniana Hayata ) is a perennial climbing shrub belonging to the genus ""Millettia"". It is one of the most well known among ~150 species of ""Millettia"", as it is widely used in traditional practices, such as for poisoning fish, agricultural pesticide, blood tonic, and treatments of cancer and infertility. The"
"by digitalis, therefore, the second-choice drug lidocaine is more commonly used. Digoxigenin (DIG) is a steroid found exclusively in the flowers and leaves of the plants ""D. purpurea"" and ""D. lanata"". It is used as a molecular probe to detect DNA or RNA. It can easily be attached to nucleotides by chemical modifications. DIG molecules are often linked to uridine nucleotides; DIG-labelled uridine (DIG-U) can then be incorporated into RNA probes via ""in vitro"" transcription. Once hybridisation occurs ""in situ"", RNA probes with the incorporated DIG-U can be detected with anti-DIG antibodies that are conjugated to alkaline phosphatase. To reveal"