So a guy decided to try and kill his wife by mixing Aconitine into her toothpaste. Gotta give the guy points for creativity. Aconitine is derived from a plant – the Aconitum species, also known as monkshood, wolf’s bane, leopard’s bane, devil’s helmet, Queen of all Poisons, and blue rocket, among other names. It’s a beautiful plant but the toxin will turn you inside out – it affects sodium channels in the heart and peripheral nervous system. Death usually occurs within two to six hours in fatal poisoning which has been reported after only 2-3 tablespoons of the poison. The initial signs are include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. This is followed by a sensation of burning, tingling, and numbness in the mouth and face, and of burning in the abdomen. Hmmm…sounds just like the symptoms reported by the wife and daughter. There really isn’t any antidote for aconitine – you either live or die depending on the dose you ingest and how sensitive you are to the cardiac and neurologic effects. The biggest flaw in this master scheme? Why did he put the poison into toothpaste? This is Tennessee after all.
Ok – just kidding about the Tennessee thing. BTW – you realize that if the toothbrush was invented anywhere else but in Tennessee, it would be called the teethbrush.
Monkshood
