The real poison ivy. I'm Jason Horton. I'm Rebecca Leib. And this is Ghost Town.

A 51-year-old woman with a history of suicide attempts and oppression is admitted to the ER,

complaining of nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, chest tightness. She had an alarmingly low heart rate

of 30 beats per minute, versus a normal heart rate of 80 to 100 beats per minute, and intensely

high calcium levels. Doctors were baffled and alarmed at the woman's stats, as everything

else seemed normal. Eventually, she admitted to ingesting Cerbera O'Dollum seeds, the product of

one of the deadliest plants on the planet. Today, we're talking about the Cerbera O'Dollum tree,

known popularly and not coincidentally as the suicide tree. Very simply put, Cerbera O'Dollum

has the highest concentration of Cerberan of any plant, which is a highly toxic like

co-side molecule compound with its own brand of steroid core and electose ring. When the

Cerberan binds, it blocks the pathway and leads to a buildup of extracellular potassium and

intracellular calcium. This buildup fucks your stomach and decreases the functionality of the

nerves and muscles in your heart, making the heart slow down and making you eventually die.

The toxin itself is well known and has been found in over 500 plant species in 12 different

plant families. The ecological function it serves, however, is still relatively unclear, maybe

to ward off herbivores trying to eat its fruit. Those who ingest part of the Cerbera O'Dollum

experience its effects within the hour, including a variety of gastrointestinal and cardiac symptoms,

as you might imagine, diarrhea, headache, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain.

Forensic sources believe these toxic poisonings also include in the late stages, like when you're

about to die, burning sensations in the mouth, dilated pupils, irregular beating of the heart

and drowsiness, leading to coma and eventually death. Death often occurs within three to six

hours of eating parts of the tree. This tree grows to about 32 feet high and is found only in the

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