Steroidal alkaloid found in Veratrum grandiflorum (Maxim.) Loes F., V. album L., V. viride Sol., Liliaceae: Saito, Bull. Chem. Soc. Jpn. 9, 15 (1934), C.A. 28, 2463 (1934); Poethke, Arch. Pharm. 275, 357, 571 (1937); 276, 170 (1938); 282, 56 (1944); Seiferle et al., J. Econ. Entomol. 35, 35 (1942); Jacobs, Craig, J. Biol. Chem. 160, 555 (1945). Structure: Fried et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. 73, 2970 (1951). Reviews: Wintersteiner in Graff, Essays in Biochemistry (Wiley, New York, 1956) pp 308-321; idem, Festschrift Arthur Stoll (Basel, 1957) pp 166-176; L. F. Fieser, M. Fieser, Steroids (Reinhold, New York, 1959) pp 870-877. Stereochemistry: Sicher, Tichy, Tetrahedron Lett. no. 12, 6 (1959); Augustine, Chem. Ind. (London) 196l, 1448; Mitsuhashi, Shimizu, Tetrahedron 19, 1027 (1963); Bailey et al., Tetrahedron Lett. 1963, 555; Masamune et al., ibid. 1965, 489. Revised stereochemistry: Scott et al., ibid. 1967, 2381; Kupchan, Suffness, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 90, 2730 (1968); Sprague et al., Tetrahedron 27, 4857 (1971). Total synthesis: Kutney et al., Can. J. Chem. 53, 1796 (1975). Comparative toxicity: O. Krayer et al., J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther. 82, 167 (1944); K. Tanaka, ibid. 113, 89 (1955).