bolesatine has been isolated from fruiting bodies of R. satanas and implicated in the poisonings. Bolesatine is a protein synthesis inhibitor and, when given to mice, causes massive thrombosis. At lower concentrations, bolesatine is a mitogen, inducing cell division in human T lymphocytes. Muscarine has also been isolated from the fungus, but the quantities are believed to be far too small to account for its toxic effects. More recent studies have associated the poisoning caused by R. satanas with hyperprocalcitonemia, and classified it as a distinct syndrome among fungal poisonings. Controversially, English mycologist John Ramsbottom reported in 1953 that R. satanas is consumed in certain parts of Italy and the former Czechoslovakia. In those regions, the fungus is reportedly eaten following prolonged boiling that may neutralise the toxins, though this has never been proven scientifically. Similar reports exist from the San Francisco Bay Area of the United States, but probably involve a different fungus misidentified as R. satanas. Ramsbottom speculated that there may be a regional variation in its toxicity, and conceded that the fungus may not be as poisonous as widely reported. Nevertheless, R. satanas is rarely sampled casually, not least because of the putrid smell of its mature fruiting bodies, which in addition to their bright colours and blue staining, make the fungus unappealing for human consumption. References Poisonous fungi satanas Fungi of Europe Fungi described in 1831