Thermopsis is a genus of legumes, native to temperate North America and east Asia. They are herbaceous perennials and are known as goldenbanners or false-lupines.

Species Thermopsis comprises the following species:

Thermopsis alpina (Pall.) Ledeb. Thermopsis alterniflora Regel & Schmalh.

Thermopsis barbata Benth. Thermopsis bargusinensis Czefr. Thermopsis californica S. Watson — western North America var. argentata (Greene) C.J.Chen & B.L.Turner var. californica S. Watson var. semota

Thermopsis chinensis S. Moore

Thermopsis dahurica Czefr.

Thermopsis dolichocarpa V.A. Nikitin

Thermopsis gracilis Howell — western North America

Thermopsis gyirongensis S.Q. Wei Thermopsis hirsutissima

Thermopsis inflata Cambess. Thermopsis jacutica Czefr.

Thermopsis lanceolata R.Br.

Thermopsis longicarpa N.Ulziykh.

Thermopsis macrophylla Hook. & Arn. — western North America Thermopsis mollis (Michx.) M.A.Curtis ex A.Gray — eastern North America Thermopsis mongolica Czefr. Thermopsis montana Nutt. — Rocky Mountains of North America var. hitchcockii var. montana

Thermopsis przewalskii Czefr. Thermopsis rhombifolia (Pursh) Richardson — Rocky Mountains of North America

Thermopsis robusta Howell—western North America

Thermopsis schischkinii Czefr.Some sources treat Thermopsis schischkinii as a synonym of Thermopsis mongolica.

Thermopsis smithiana E.Peter

Thermopsis turkestanica Gand.

Thermopsis villosa (Walter) Fernald & B.G.Schub.—eastern North America

Thermopsis yushuensis S.Q.Wei

Toxicity The toxicity of T. rhombifolia and T. montana has been the subject of research. The toxicity is known to come from a series of alpha-pyridone quinolizidine alkaloids, including (in decreasing order of relative abundance in plant tissues) anagyrine, thermposine, 5,6-dehydrolupanine, cytisine, N-methylcystisine, lupanine, and 17-oxysparteine. Their concentration is highest in young plants, flowers, and legumes, though otherwise generally alkaloid concentrations are equal throughout the plant. Alkaloid dosage from plant ingestion is in the range of 1.1–11.3 mg/kg.

A 1997 review found 23 cases. 18 patients developed symptoms within a few hours and symptoms lasted up to 12 hours, including vomiting, dizziness, abdominal pain, drowsiness, nausea, headache, oral irritation, tachycardia, tremors, and other general signs. Only 2 required admission to a health care facility, one of which involved elevated CK levels. Purified alkaloids cause the same signs of intoxication as the whole plant.

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