to isolate picrotoxinin and picrotin individually. Reaction with the nearby cis alcohol is the key obstruction, and can be inhibited by pretreatment (protection) with trifluoroacetic anhydride in pyridine: Picrotoxin has also been used as a starting material in several synthetic processes, including the creation of dl-picrotoxadiene, which retains certain features of the picrotoxin skeleton.

Mechanism of action