What does it do: The plant contains the alkaloid
Sparteine that causes vomiting, purging, depresses the nervous system, lowers the blood pressure and in extreme cases will impair the respiratory organs leading to death.
(or mixtures containing same), enhances the bioavailability and efficacy of a number of drugs and other substances, including vasaka leaves, vasicine,
sparteine, phenytoin, rifampicin, sulfadiazine, and propranolol (30-31).
It is worth mentioning that from cyto- and toxicological evaluation, in the short and medium term, developed in the 80s, food flavorings
sparteine, allyl hexanoate and quinine have been banned for use in processed foods by ANVISA in the early 90s.
Drugs are metabolized by three main ways involving three responsible enzymes: 1) acetyltransferase enzyme NAT2 that acetylates certain sulfonamides, isoniazid, hydralazine and procainamide [84, 85] and metabolizes xenobiotics; 2) a hydroxylation enzyme that catalyzes the metabolism of drugs like debrisoquine and
sparteine and a large number of widely prescribed drugs; and 3) another hydroxylation enzyme that catalyzes the oxidation of phenytoin-type drugs.
Heart tonics, such as
sparteine, trinitrine, bromide of sodium, and bromide of potassium were advocated by a number of physicians for maintaining the nervous system in a state of normal functioning (Crothers, 1893; Jennings, 1890; Mattison, 1892).
I the late 1970s, 2 groups of researchers noted unexpected serious adverse reactions in studies of debrisoquine, (5) a sympatholytic antihypertensive drug, and
sparteine, (6) an antiarrhythmic and oxytocic alkaloid drug.
Gram, "Pharmacokinetics of citalopram in relation to the
sparteine and the mephenytoin oxidation polymorphisms," Therapeutic DrugMonitoring, vol.
By way of clinical observation (i.e., administration of the antiarrhythmic and oxocytic drug
sparteine (44) and the antihypertensive agent debrisoquine (45)), the first CYP2D6 phenotypic variant (sparteine/debrisoquine polymorphism) distinct from an extensive metabolizer (EM) phenotype was identified more than 30 years ago and was termed a "poor metabolizer" (PM) phenotype.
Although alkaloids with the highest toxicity (
sparteine, anagyrine and ammodendrine) were not detected, the results indicate that the major risk for intoxication could occur during pod growth and seed ripening, due to high total alkaloid content and larger abundance of lupanine in immature fruits.
Mephenytoin and
sparteine pharmacogenetics in Canadian Caucasians.
Commonly used prototype substrate reactions to characterize cytochrome P450 2D6 activity include bufuralol 1'-hydroxylation, debrisoquin 4-hydroxylation,
sparteine oxidation, and dextromethorphan O-demethylation.