The Toxins Have Medical Uses.

One of the interesting facts about poison dart frogs is research has shown that toxins from these frogs have various medical uses.

Epipedobates tricolor's skin contains chemicals that may be extracted and demonstrated to have therapeutic use. This toxin is used by scientists to create a painkiller. One such substance is epibatidine, a painkiller that has 200 times the potency of morphine but a therapeutic dose that is very close to the lethal dose. Tebanicline, an Abbott Laboratories-created derivative of ABT-594, advanced through human Phase II trials before being shelved for further research due to an intolerable frequency of gastrointestinal side effects. Additionally, promising as muscle relaxants, heart stimulants, and hunger suppressants are the secretions from dendrobatids.