Cardiotoxicity of Consolida rugulosa, a poisonous weed in Western China.

Poisonous weeds are a global problem since they not only hinder local economic development, but also cause ecological harm. Consolida rugulosa (family Ranunculaceae) is a weed that is widespread in Northwestern China and causes severe poisoning when ingested by livestock. In the present study, we purified the toxins in this plant and investigated their mechanism of action. Five natural diterpene alkaloids (compounds 1–5)—including two new compounds (1 and 2)—were isolated, and five semi-synthetic derivatives (6–10) were synthesised based on 4 or 5 for structure-activity analysis. The toxicity of the compounds was evaluated in vitro with lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) assay. All of the compounds—especially 1—stimulated LDH release in primary cultured rat myocardial cells, an effect that was blocked by the Na+ channel blocker lidocaine. Electrocardiography revealed that rats treated with 1 had severe arrhythmia, while heart Doppler echocardiography and analysis of serum biomarkers levels revealed that administration of 1 for 15 days induced changes in cardiac structure and myocardial enzyme levels. These effects were antagonised by lidocaine treatment. Thus, diterpene alkaloids are the main compounds responsible for the cardiotoxicity of C. rugulosa, which can be mitigated by co-administration of lidocaine.