Narcissus poeticus

Narcissus Narcissus tazetta Narcissus poeticus Linalool, methyl anthranilate (34), benzyl acetate, a-terpineol 95... 

Poetaminine (mp 221°-223° decomp. -fl00° in EtOH), was isolated from Narcissus poeticus var. ornatus and assigned the molecular formula C17H21NO5 (43). In more recent isolation and chemical studies (42) the formula was revised to C18H19NO5, and it was proposed that poetaminine is the optical antipode of 1-0-acetyllycorine (I R=Ac, Ri = H). 

Mallotus japonicus Marasmiellus ramealis Microsporium cookei Nannizzia cajetani Narcissus poeticus Numularia spp. 

Leucoium vernum Lycoris radiata Narcissus poeticus... 

Considering that the Narcissus species are a rich source of alkaloids, it is not surprising that, despite their lethal potential, plants of this genus have been used throughout history in traditional medicine to treat a variety of medicinal problems (386). N. poeticus, for example, is described in the Bible as a well-established treatment for symptoms that would now be defined as cancer (387). In the fourth century BC, Hippocrates of Cos (the Father of Medicine ) recommended a pessary prepared from Narcissus oil (probably N. poeticus) for the management of uterine tumors (388). In the first century ad, Pliny the Elder also recorded the topical use of... 

N. poeticus and N. pseudonarcissus for this purpose. It is now known that N. poeticus contains 0.012% of the antineoplastic agent narciclasine (68) in the fresh bulb (14,101). Arabian, North African, and Chinese medical practitioners of the Middle Ages continued using Narcissus oil in cancer treatment (389). For example, bulbs of N. tazetta L. var. chinensis, cultivated in China as a decorative plant, were used topically for the treatment of tumors in folk medicine. In this case, pretazettine (64) was established to be one of the antitumor active compounds (133,390). The bulbs of N. tazetta continue to be used in Turkey as a home remedy for the treatment of abscesses because of their antiphlogistic and analgesic properties (391). 

Not all Narcissus species are equally dangerous. The bulbs of N. poeticus, for example, are more dangerous than those of N. pseudonarcissus. Neither do all plant tissues have the same concentration or profile of alkaloids. Thus, the alkaloid content of N. papyraceus is five times higher in the aerial part than in the bulbs, being toxic for herbivorous mammals (137). The distribution of the alkaloids in the plant tissues can be related with the plant defense mechanism. 

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