Definition of Cantharidin
1. n. The active principle of the cantharis, or Spanish fly, a volatile, acrid, bitter solid, crystallizing in four-sided prisms.
Definition of Cantharidin
1. Noun. (organic compound) A volatile organic compound in cantharis, or Spanish fly. ¹
¹ Source: wiktionary.com
Definition of Cantharidin
1. [n -S]
Medical Definition of Cantharidin
1.
Toxic compound from the spanish fly or blistering beetle (lytta (cantharis) vesicatoria) and other insects. It was formerly an irritant, vesicant, and rubefacient paste of whole insects called cantharides. It is now used to produce skin inflammation. It causes gastroenteritis, nephritis, and circulatory failure if absorbed.
Pharmacological action: irritants.
Chemical name: 4,7-Epoxyisobenzofuran-1,3-dione, hexahydro-3a,7a-dimethyl-, (3aalpha,4beta,7beta,7aalpha)-
(12 Dec 1998)
Lexicographical Neighbors of Cantharidin
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