Toxicity of Extracts of Derris Root for Mice.

Summary

From studies dealing with the acute toxicity of derris and several extracts thereof for mice, it appears that this toxicity is due to the insecticidally active materials represented by the rotenone content, total chloroform extractives content, and red color index. No single one of these three determinations, however, seemed uniformly to indicate the relative toxicity of the various fractions studied. Materials not extractable with chloroform were found to be practically nontoxic. Thus far no active alkaloid or glycoside has been isolated from derris.