Logo

Log In Sign Up |  An official publication of: American College of Emergency Physicians
Navigation
  • Home
  • Multimedia
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
  • Clinical
    • Airway Managment
    • Case Reports
    • Critical Care
    • Guidelines
    • Imaging & Ultrasound
    • Pain & Palliative Care
    • Pediatrics
    • Resuscitation
    • Trauma & Injury
  • Resource Centers
    • mTBI Resource Center
  • Career
    • Practice Management
      • Benchmarking
      • Reimbursement & Coding
      • Care Team
      • Legal
      • Operations
      • Quality & Safety
    • Awards
    • Certification
    • Compensation
    • Early Career
    • Education
    • Leadership
    • Profiles
    • Retirement
    • Work-Life Balance
  • Columns
    • ACEP4U
    • Airway
    • Benchmarking
    • Brief19
    • By the Numbers
    • Coding Wizard
    • EM Cases
    • End of the Rainbow
    • Equity Equation
    • FACEPs in the Crowd
    • Forensic Facts
    • From the College
    • Images in EM
    • Kids Korner
    • Medicolegal Mind
    • Opinion
      • Break Room
      • New Spin
      • Pro-Con
    • Pearls From EM Literature
    • Policy Rx
    • Practice Changers
    • Problem Solvers
    • Residency Spotlight
    • Resident Voice
    • Skeptics’ Guide to Emergency Medicine
    • Sound Advice
    • Special OPs
    • Toxicology Q&A
    • WorldTravelERs
  • Resources
    • ACEP.org
    • ACEP Knowledge Quiz
    • Issue Archives
    • CME Now
    • Annual Scientific Assembly
      • ACEP14
      • ACEP15
      • ACEP16
      • ACEP17
      • ACEP18
      • ACEP19
    • Annals of Emergency Medicine
    • JACEP Open
    • Emergency Medicine Foundation
  • About
    • Our Mission
    • Medical Editor in Chief
    • Editorial Advisory Board
    • Awards
    • Authors
    • Article Submission
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Subscribe
    • Privacy Policy
    • Copyright Information

Toxicology Answer: The Periwinkle

By Jason Hack, MD | on December 9, 2022 | 0 Comment
Toxicology Q&A
  • Tweet
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
Print-Friendly Version

Answer: Periwinkle, or Madagascar periwinkle (Catharanthus rosea), is a tropical perennial that was brought to Europe in 1757 as an ornamental plant. It grows well in temperate climates—zones 9–11 in the U.S. The large-lobed, 50-cent coin sized flowers have colors that vary from white to ‘periwinkle’ blue, to deep pinks, to vibrant reds. The flowers are nicely contrasted by the deep green leaves that jut out of supporting stalks that can reach two feet tall.

You Might Also Like
  • Toxicology Answer: What Are the Side Effects of Chewing This Beautiful Bloom?
  • Toxicology Answer: the Lovely Lily of the Valley
  • Toxicology Answer: What Flower Did the Greek Army Use Against a City?
Explore This Issue
ACEP Now: Vol 41 – No 12 – December 2022

Introduction

There are some amazing stories of serendipity in medicine—many are widely known (e.g., breadcrumbs in the Petri dish leading to penicillin). This plant is a contender for a top spot, deserving of a retelling.

The Madagascar periwinkle was initially investigated in the 1950s for the treatment of diabetes.1 When it was administered it did decrease glucosuria, but also increased blood glucose levels. During its investigation into the treatment of diabetes, researchers injected extract of periwinkle into rats; they reliably died of Pseudomonas septicemia in five to seven days. On autopsy, the rats had multiple abscesses in the liver, kidneys, and other organs. In this particular lab, the unexpected findings were notable because this is what the laboratory had been seeing in rats that were undergoing large dose steroid exposures in another study. When the scientists looked closer, they found that periwinkle extracts resulted in a severe decline in white blood cell count, granulocytopenia, and profoundly depressed bone marrow. Further investigation led to the isolation of the compounds vincristine and vinblastine.2

Toxin/Contribution to Medicine

Vincristine and vinblastine differ by only one carbonyl group—in an aldehyde in the former, and in a methyl group in the latter. In 1961, the Food and Drug Administration approved vincristine as a chemotherapeutic agent for the treatment of Hodgkin’s disease. In 1963 vinblastine, was isolated and approved for the treatment of childhood leukemia. This beautiful, yet poisonous, tropical plant, is responsible for saving millions from cancer.3

Other Uses

  • In Cuba and in Puerto Rico, an infusion of flowers together with a few drops of ethanol added was used as an eyewash for infants.
  • In Latin America, the leaf tea has been used as a gargle for sore throat and laryngitis.
  • In India, the fresh juice squeezed from the leaves was used for wasp stings.
  • In Vietnam, herbalists use the leaf and stem tea as a treatment for everything from menstrual difficulties to malaria.
  • In Asian cultures, South Africa and Caribbean islands, periwinkle tea was useful as a folk cure for diabetes.

Dr. HackDr. Hack (@oleanderphotography) is chief of the division of medical toxicology and vice chair for research at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina. He enjoys taking photographs of beautiful toxic, medicinal, and benign flowers that he stumbles upon or grows in his garden.

Pages: 1 2 | Single Page

Topics: PoisonToxin

Related

  • Toxicology Answer: the Jequirity Bean

    May 9, 2025 - 0 Comment
  • Toxicology Question: Which Plant Contains a Protein That Inhibits Cell Function?

    May 9, 2025 - 0 Comment
  • Toxicology Answer: The Pretty and Toxic Tobacco

    October 8, 2024 - 0 Comment

Current Issue

ACEP Now: June 2025 (Digital)

Read More

No Responses to “Toxicology Answer: The Periwinkle”

Leave a Reply Cancel Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


*
*

Wiley
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy
  • Terms of Use
  • Advertise
  • Cookie Preferences
Copyright © 2025 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved, including rights for text and data mining and training of artificial technologies or similar technologies. ISSN 2333-2603