Poisoned arrows are one of the most powerful contraceptives that exist. They kill you and it is impossible to conceive a child. Jokes aside, the truth is that a team of researchers in Minnesota have discovered that the darts used by some African tribes are bathed in a toxic substance that can serve to reduce male fertility.
Said substance is ouabain, which is extracted from two plants, the Strophanthus gratus and the bark of Acokanthera ouabaio. The Somali natives use it to hunt, and with only a poisoned arrow they are able to kill a hippopotamus causing a cardiorespiratory arrest.
But now, researchers have conducted an experiment with mice, which has shown that this substance can be used as a contraceptive, without damaging the animals’ hearts. The secret lies in slightly altering the chemical composition of ouabain, eliminating a group of sugars, and replacing another of its ingredients, lactone, with triazole.
The result was that the mice that were treated with this modified ouabain lost their fertility without having any heart or health problems.
