What does conine mean?
Conine is a poisonous, oily liquid alkaloid — chemical formula C₈H₁₇N — found chiefly in poison hemlock (Conium maculatum). It is the principal active toxin of the plant long infamous as the means of execution in ancient Athens: drinking hemlock juice caused a gradual ascending paralysis that ended fatally, as in the death of Socrates in 399 BC. Chemically, conine belongs to the piperidine family of alkaloids and is notable both as the first plant alkaloid whose structure was determined and among the earliest to be artificially synthesized (by Albert Ladenburg in 1886). The word appears mainly in scientific, medical, and historical writing, where it denotes the pure isolated compound rather than the plant itself. In modern chemistry the spelling 'coniine' is more common, but both forms refer to the same substance.
nounA poisonous volatile liquid alkaloid, C₈H₁₇N, found in hemlock; it is the chief toxic principle of poison hemlock and causes progressive muscular paralysis.
- A toxic piperidine alkaloid obtained from poison hemlock (Conium maculatum), responsible for its characteristic paralysis-inducing effects.
- (In older chemistry texts) any of the closely related isomeric alkaloids occurring alongside it in hemlock.
"The chemist extracted conine from the crushed hemlock seeds for toxicological analysis."
"Toxicologists identified conine as the agent responsible for the livestock poisoning."
"In 1886, Ladenburg achieved the laboratory synthesis of conine, marking a milestone in organic chemistry."
Rarely pluralized except when referring to multiple isomers or related alkaloids collectively.
"Several conines occur together in the essential oil of hemlock."
The same deadly alkaloid that killed Socrates in 399 BC was later isolated in the lab as conine — the first plant alkaloid ever synthesized by chemists.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of conine
Conine derives from the New Latin 'Conium', the genus name of poison hemlock, itself borrowed from Greek 'κώνειον' (kōneion), meaning hemlock. The alkaloid name was formed by adding the '-ine' suffix conventionally used for alkaloids when the substance was first characterized in the nineteenth century. Its cognates include other alkaloid names built on '-ine', such as nicotine and quinine, which follow the same naming pattern.
Related word forms
How conine is actually used
Chiefly encountered in chemistry, pharmacology, and historical accounts of classical antiquity; the spelling 'coniine' is preferred in modern chemical literature.
Easily confused with conine
Coniine is simply a variant spelling of the same compound — both denote the hemlock alkaloid — though 'coniine' is now the more standard form in chemistry.
Cornine is not a related substance; the resemblance is coincidental.
Quinine is an antimalarial drug derived from cinchona bark, whereas conine is a paralyzing toxin from hemlock.