Ergotoxine and some other constituents of ergot : by George Barger and H.H. Dale.

  • George Barger
Date:
[1907?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Ergotoxine and some other constituents of ergot : by George Barger and H.H. Dale. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    crystalline acid (secale-amino-sulphonic acid). Since, however, Robert’s statement that it is therapeutically useless has not been disputed, it need not concern us further. The other substances described by Robert are both insoluble in water, but soluble in alcohol. They are £ sphacelinic acid ’ and the alkaloid £ cornutine.’ According to Robert both substances produce contractions of the uterus and act on the vaso-motor centre, causing rise of blood-pressure. In these respects relatively large doses of the acid correspond to small doses of the alkaloid. The chief points of difference are that sphacelinic acid produces gangrene, and cornutine does not, and that cornutine, in small doses, has a con- vulsant effect superficially similar to that of strychnine. Robert does not claim to have isolated his substances in even an approximate state of chemical purity. The one substance claiming to be an active principle which had at that time been obtained chemically pure, namely, Tanret’s crystalline ergotinine, he declared to be inactive. Robert’s theory of the existence of two principles, sphacelinic acid and cornutine, was upheld by Bombelon (26), though this author’s preparations were not examined physiologically. Robert’s results were further confirmed by his pupils ; in the case of sphacelinic acid by Griinfeld (30), and in that of cornutine by Lewitsky (24). Evidence both in favour of and against the therapeutic use of cornu¬ tine was adduced by various clinical observers. (See, for instance, Erhard (22), Graefe (23), Thomson (27).) In 1889 Robert (28) con¬ tributed to the Real-Encyklopadie der Pharmacie his article on ergot, in which he gave a modified method for the preparation of cornutine, and strongly recommended this alkaloid for obstetrical purposes, whereas in 1884 he inclined to favour the use of sphacelinic acid. Reller (32) in 1894 adopted this later view of Robert, and, further assuming that ergotinine and cornutine are the same and the only alkaloid in ergot, he based a method of assay on the determina¬ tion of the total alkaloid. For this supposed one alkaloid he preferred the name cornutine 6 on practical grounds.’ Later, in 1896, Reller (35) regarded cornutine as a partially decomposed ergotinine, and advanced arguments against Robert’s
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