The simpler natural bases / by George Barger.

  • George Barger
Date:
1914
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The simpler natural bases / by George Barger. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    1855. On an industrial scale it is formed by the destructive distilla¬ tion of beet sugar molasses ; here the parent substance is betaine. Examples of the production of trimethylamine by pure cultures are the action of Proteus vulgaris on wheat gluten and on meat, of Bacillus liquefaciens on commercial gelatin and of Bacteriumprodigiosum on choline and on lecithin. Ackermann and Schutze [1910, 1911] found that the last-named organism does not produce trimethylamine from betaine, and that B. vulgatus does not decompose choline. The alleged occurrence of trimethylamine in urine has been the subject of several investigations. Long ago Dessaignes [1856] ob¬ tained it by distillation of urine with caustic soda (37 grm. of the free base from 65 litres of human urine). He, however, left- open the question whether trimethylamine is present as such or is formed by the decomposition of some other compound by the alkali. This question was likewise left unanswered by de Filippi [1906] who worked out a process for the estimation of urinary trimethylamine (see appendix). Takeda [1909] used magnesium oxide instead of caustic soda, and distilled under reduced pressure; he found no trimethylamine in the urine of horses and of dogs and only doubtful traces in human urine ; it is however formed in putrefaction. Kinoshita [1910, 1], using Herzig and Meyer’s method for the estimation of N-methyl groups, found only traces, and Erdmann [1910] has also arrived at the con¬ clusion that “ fresh normal urine does not contain trimethylamine According to Kutscher the trimethylamine in urine is formed from such bases as novaine and reducto-novaine. Isobutylamine, CHLcH . CH„. NH„. CH/ This base was obtained by the putrefaction of racemic a-amino- isovaleric acid (d.l. valine) by Neuberg and Karczag [1909]. A solution of 10 grams of the amino-acid in 450 c.c. of water, with a little KCi, Na2HP04 and MgS04 was rendered alkaline with sodium carbonate and yielded after inoculation and four weeks’ incubation at 37° 0*424 grm. of a platinichloride (C4HnN)2H2PtCl6, mp. 226-227°, in all probability that of isobutylamine. A butylamine has also been obtained by Gautier from cod liver oil prepared by the old putrefactive process. In Fagara xanthoxyloides isobutylamine occurs in combination with piperonylacrylic acid as an amide, fagaramide (Thoms and Thumen, [1911])- Isobutylamine is the lowest amine causing any appreciable rise of blood pressure when injected intravenously.
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