K-Strophantidin can be differentiated into[citation needed]: Strophantidin is a cardiac glycoside which mechanism of action is similar to Digitalis, Ouabain and digitoxin.

In 1858 – 1863, the Scottish missionary and explorer, Dr David Livingstone, led a River Zambesi Expedition in Central Africa.

In addition to other arrow poisons, Dr Meller found among the Manganja hills a specimen of Strophanthus kombe (a climbing plant of considerable size) at the end of 1861.

This plant, specimen of the seed and the extracted arrow poison were sent to Sir W. J. Hocker at Kew Gardens Herbarium in England and also to Europe.

Several species of Strophanthus were also used by natives of West Africa as sources of arrow poison including S.hispidus, S. sarmentosus and S. gratus.

In 1862, Dr. William Sharpey, Professor of Anatomy and Physiology at University College, London, recognized the extract as a cardiac poison.

Thomas R. Fraser, Professor of material medicals and therapeutics in Edinburgh also worked on frogs, birds and mammals with that "Kombe arrow poison".

In 1885, Fraser had isolated a glycoside from S. kombe and called it strophanthin, a result which he presented at a meeting of the British Medical Association in Cardiff.

Albert Fraenkel, pharmacologist in Heidelberg, saw strophanthus as therapeutical in cardiac failure (emergency cases initially).

Bruno Kisch (New York City) noted that ouabain (strophanthin-G) has a positive ionotropic activity and faster onset than digitalis.

Isolation of k-strophanthin can be done using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) followed by detection with electrospray ionization mass-spectrometry (ESI-MS) using RP-C-18 column (1% formic acid in water/acetonitrile as mobile phase).

The toxic effect is also influenced by the mechanism of action of a protein called phospholemman which regulates the sodium pump in the heart.