reserpine
/rɪˈsəːpiːn
/noun [mass noun] Medicine
A compound of the alkaloid class obtained from Indian snakeroot and other plants and used in the treatment of hypertension.What do aspirin, codeine, ipecac, reserpine, scopolamine, theophylline, and vinblastine have in common?...
- The patient's medical history should be reviewed for conditions such as hypothyroidism, stroke, or exposure to certain drugs associated with mood changes, such as steroids, reserpine, beta-blockers, and particularly alcohol.
- Herbal medicine has contributed aspirin from willow bark, reserpine from snakeroot, taxol from the yew tree, but ‘natural’ is not automatically safe.
Origin
1950s: from the modern Latin species name R(auwolfia) serp(entina), named after Leonhard Rauwolf (see rauwolfia), + -ine4.