resiniferatoxin
Resiniferatoxin (RTX) is a naturally occurring chemical found in resin spurge (Euphorbia resinifera), a cactus-like plant commonly found in Morocco, and in Euphorbia poissonii found in northern Nigeria. It is a potent functional analog of capsaicin, the active ingredient in chili peppers.
Key facts
- Pepper.heat
- Highly toxic and caustic non-capsaicinoid TRPV1 agonist - considered " above peak"
- Pepper.scoville
- 16,000,000,000
via Wikipedia infobox
Article
7 sectionsContents
- Biological activity
- Total synthesis
- Toxicity
- Research
- See also
- References
- External links
Resiniferatoxin (RTX) is a naturally occurring chemical found in resin spurge (Euphorbia resinifera), a cactus-like plant commonly found in Morocco, and in Euphorbia poissonii found in northern Nigeria. It is a potent functional analog of capsaicin, the active ingredient in chili peppers.
==Biological activity== Resiniferatoxin has a score of 16 billion Scoville heat units, making pure resiniferatoxin about 500 to 1000 times hotter than pure capsaicin. Resiniferatoxin activates transient vanilloid receptor 1 (TRPV1) in a subpopulation of primary afferent sensory neurons involved in nociception, the transmission of physiological pain. TRPV1 is an ion channel in the plasma membrane of sensory neurons and stimulation by resiniferatoxin causes this ion channel to become permeable to cations, especially calcium. The influx of cations causes the neuron to depolarize, transmitting signals similar to those that would be transmitted if the innervated tissue were being burned or damaged. This stimulation is followed by desensitization and analgesia, in part because the nerve endings die from calcium overload.