Lychee is a tree found in southeastern China, India, southeast Asia and South Africa. Eating of its fruit has been implicated in an encephalopathy reported in Indian and Vietnamese children.
The lychee tree is related to ackee.
The lychee fruit may contain increased levels of:
(1) methylene cyclopropyl acetic acid (MCPA)
(2) methylene cyclopropyl glycine (MCPG), which is a homologue of hypoglycin A
These chemicals inhibit hepatic glucose production and cause hypoglycemia in animals.
An encephalopathy is seen in children in India and northern Vietnam during the lychee harvest season. Some of the children have shown hypoglycemia.
Hypotheses for the encephalopathy:
(1) hypoglycemic encephalopathy, which is linked to malnutrition
(2) pesticide or other toxin associated with lychee cultivation
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