Lily toxin (Lilium spp., principle unidentified) in your home: a safety profile

Not medical or professional safety advice, and not a substitute for a qualified clinician — consult one. Full disclaimer →

(Your Household-specific data is limited; this page draws from human adult context.) Lily toxin is a STUB compound record for the structurally-unidentified nephrotoxic principle of true lilies (Lilium spp.) and day lilies (Hemerocallis spp.). After decades of veterinary toxicology research (documented systematically since 1987), the molecular identity of the toxic agent remains UNKNOWN — extracts and partial fractions reproduce the toxicity in cats, but no single molecule has been definitively isolated and characterized. The clinical syndrome is well-described: cats develop acute tubular necrosis (proximal renal tubule) within 24-72 hours of ANY exposure — ingestion of leaf, petal, pollen, or even water from a vase containing cut lilies. Even pollen-on-fur grooming behavior delivers a nephrotoxic dose. Untreated cases progress to anuric acute kidney injury and death within 3-7 days. Aggressive IV fluid therapy within 6 hours of exposure can prevent renal failure; later presentations require hemodialysis with poor prognosis. All Lilium species (Easter, Tiger, Stargazer, Asiatic, Oriental, Day Lily, etc.) are implicated; calla lilies, peace lilies, and lily-of-the-valley are botanically NOT true lilies and have different (less catastrophic) toxicities. Dogs are NOT susceptible to this specific nephrotoxin. ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center 1-888-426-4435 is the primary clinical resource. This stub exists so Phase 54 product hq-p-pet-000085 can reference it; structure-related fields (CAS, PubChem CID, InChIKey, SMILES, molecular formula, molecular weight) are all stamped CEILING with the explicit reason that the toxic principle is unidentified after decades of research.