title: Comparative toxicity of coniine, an alkaloid of Conium maculatum (poison hemlock), in chickens, quails, and turkeys.
abstract: Coniine, an alkaloid of Conium maculatum (poison hemlock), was administered by gavage to immature chickens, quails, and turkeys at 0, 25, 50, and 100 mg/kg body weight. At 25 mg coniine/kg body weight, clinical signs were observed only in quails (2/10) and consisted of excitement, depression, hypermetria, seizures, opisthotonos, and flaccid paralysis. Chickens (9/10) and quails (8/10) dosed at 50 mg/kg body weight were affected, and several birds of each species died (2/10 and 5/10, respectively). Turkeys (7/10) were affected only when dosed at 100 mg/kg body weight, and quails (6/10), turkeys (4/10), and chickens (10/10) died at this dose. There were no gross or microscopic lesions. Coniine was detected in skeletal muscle and liver of birds dying after ingestion and was present in some survivors 7 days post-treatment.
authors.affiliation: Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, School of Veterinary Medicine, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907.
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Frank
authors.forename: W M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Reed
mesh_terms: D000470:Alkaloids / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000633:toxicity*; D000818:Animals; D002645:Chickens; D003088:Colinus; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism; D009132:Muscles / Q000378:metabolism; D010880:Piperidines; D011201:Poultry Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced*; D011784:Quail; D011897:Random Allocation; D012639:Seeds; D014422:Turkeys
chemical_list: D000470:Alkaloids; D010880:Piperidines; C007112:coniine