Evidence for the presence of tetrodotoxin in a powder used in Haiti for zombification.
A powder prepared by Haitian voodoo sorcerers for the making of zombis was extracted with acetic acid, the extract concentrated and applied to a small cation exchange column followed by elution with water and then acetic acid. The water and acetic acid eluents were analysed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. The analyses indicated the presence of an alkaline degradation product of tetrodotoxin, namely 2-amino-6-hydroxymethyl-8-hydroxyquinazoline, after base treatment, and of tetrodotoxin and an isomer on direct thermospray mass spectral activity.
Benedek
C
C
Institut de Médecine Légale, Université de Lausanne, Switzerland.
Rivier
L
L
D055598:Chemical Phenomena; D002627:Chemistry, Physical; D003469:Culture; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D006205:Haiti; D013779:Tetrodotoxin / Q000032:analysis*
D013779:Tetrodotoxin