Center of Forensic Science, Jining Medical University, Jining, Shandong, China.
Institute of Forensic Medicine and Laboratory Medicine, Jining Medical University, Jining, Shandong, China; Center of Forensic Science, Jining Medical University, Jining, Shandong, China.
Forensic Sci Int. 2021 Mar;320:110705. doi: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2021.110705. Epub 2021 Jan 27.
Yohimbine is an indole alkaloid from the leaves and bark of the Pausinystalia johimbe tree that has acquired an enviable reputation in treating erectile dysfunction. This report presents four simultaneous severe poisoning/death cases caused by yohimbine. The test samples comprised the venous blood of four middle-aged men (aged 47-65) who were suspected of poisoning; one of the men died due to ineffective rescue. Ethanol concentration determination and toxicological routine screening were performed using gas chromatography with flame ionization detection (GC-FID) and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). A specific LC-MS/MS method was developed to quantify yohimbine, which showed concentrations of 459, 249, and 301ng/mL in three poisoned blood samples and concentrations as high as 5631ng/mL in the deceased. Moreover, the deceased's autopsy ruled out death from trauma and previous illness, and no other common toxic components were detected in his blood. Therefore, yohimbine poisoning appears to be the most likely cause of death. As a type of alkaloid that can be employed in the treatment of clinical diseases and additives for supplements, the danger of yohimbine should be of widespread concern in society.
育亨宾是一种吲哚生物碱，来源于育亨宾树的叶子和树皮，在治疗勃起功能障碍方面享有良好的声誉。本报告介绍了 4 例同时发生的严重育亨宾中毒/死亡病例。检测样本包括 4 名疑似中毒的中年男性（年龄 47-65 岁）的静脉血，其中 1 人因抢救无效死亡。采用气相色谱-火焰离子化检测（GC-FID）和液相色谱-串联质谱（LC-MS/MS）进行乙醇浓度测定和毒理学常规筛查。开发了一种特定的 LC-MS/MS 方法来定量育亨宾，在 3 份中毒血液样本中的浓度分别为 459、249 和 301ng/mL，而在死者中的浓度高达 5631ng/mL。此外，死者的尸检排除了创伤和既往疾病导致的死亡，其血液中未检测到其他常见的有毒成分。因此，育亨宾中毒似乎是最有可能导致死亡的原因。作为一种可用于临床疾病治疗和补充剂添加剂的生物碱，育亨宾的危险应引起社会广泛关注。
