Atropine syringes at an army distribution station in Tel Aviv in September 2002. Atropine can be used as an antidote for poisoning with organophosphate nerve toxins, such as tabun sarin.
atropine, Anticholinergic drug. A poisonous, crystalline alkaloid derived from certain nightshade plants, especially Egyptian henbane, atropine is used chiefly to dry up bodily secretions, to dilate the bronchi, to prevent excessive cardiac slowing during anesthesia, and in ophthalmology to dilate the pupil of the eye. It works by suppressing the parasympathetic nervous system. Atropine is also used as an antidote for nerve gas poisoning.