Bipyridines with positively charged nitrogen atoms were already known to be poisonous before the structure of orellanine was elucidated. The herbicides paraquat and diquat are toxic not only to plants, but also to humans and livestock. Bipyridines with charged nitrogen atoms disrupt important redox reactions in organisms, 'stealing' one or two electrons and sometimes bypass the electrons into other, often undesirable, redox reactions. The terminal product can be peroxide or superoxide ions, the latter of which are harmful to the cells. It is likely that orellanine works in the same way, although the process that leads from disturbed redox reactions to serious clinical kidney damage has not been properly resolved.