What is "jervine"

Jervine \Jer"vine\, n. [Prob. fr. Sp. yerba herb, OSp., the poison of the veratrum.] (Chem.) A poisonous alkaloid resembling veratrine, and found with it in white hellebore ( Veratrum album); -- called also jervina.

n. (context organic compound English) A steroidal alkaloid, obtained from plants of the genus ''Veratrum'', that is teratogenic

Jervine is a steroidal alkaloid with molecular formula CHNO which is derived from the Veratrum plant genus. Similar to cyclopamine, which also occurs in the Veratrum genus, it is a teratogen implicated in birth defects when consumed by animals during a certain period of their gestation.