The alkaloids of some Indian aconites (A. Balfourii, A. deinorrhizum and "Chumbi aconite") / by T.A. Henry and T.M. Sharp.

Henry, Thomas Anderson, 1873-1958.

Date:: [1928]

Credit: The alkaloids of some Indian aconites (A. Balfourii, A. deinorrhizum and "Chumbi aconite") / by T.A. Henry and T.M. Sharp. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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$the alkaloid then crystallised on cooling. The yield was 0-4% expressed on the air-dry roots. The acid liquor {A) and the sodium carbonate precipitation liquors still contained some alkaloid, which was recovered in the usual way and added to the residues left from the crystallisation of the crude pseudaconitine. The nature of the alkaloids in these residues is being investigated. Pseudaconitine and Salts.—In the following description the melting points are corrected and, unless otherwise stated, are also decom¬ position points. The melting points and specific rotations recorded for salts refer to the salt dried to constant wreight. The crude alkaloid w^as recrystallised from hot 95% alcohol until of constant melting point, 212—213°. It was further purified through the hydrobromide, and the base regenerated from the pure salt had m. p. 214°, [a]ff d- 17-06° (in alcohol; c = 1-18) and + 22-75° (in chloroform; c = 4-76). The recorded m. p.’s for pseudaconitine I vary from 201° (D. and C.) to 212° (F. and N.) : for [a]D Dunstan k and Carr found -f- 18-6° (c = 1-12, in alcohol) (Found : C, 62-4, 62-7, 62-8; H, 7-8, 7-9, 7-95; N, 2-2; MeO, 27-2; NMe, 2-7. I C36H51012N requires C, 62-7; H, 7-5; N, 2-0; 6MeO, 27-0; NMe, 4-2%). The following salts are already known and were prepared for E identification of the alkaloid from A. Balfourii. The hydrobromide separates from alcohol in rosettes of triangular | prisms, m. p. 199°, [a]'{f — 18-5° (in water; c = 2-56) (Found for air - I dry salt : loss at 100° in a vacuum, 6-6. C36H510]2N,HBr,3H20 i requires H20, 6-6%. Found in dry salt : Br, 10-25. Calc. : [ Br, 10-4%). The nitrate crystallises from dry alcohol in I triangular prisms, m. p. 198°, [a]g° — 17-95° (in water ; c = 3-9) l (Found for air-dry salt : loss at 100° in a vacuum, T9. Calc, for 1 C36H51012N,HN03,H20 : H20, 2-3%. Found for dry salt : C, 1 56-9 ; H, 6-7 ; MeO, 24-75 ; NMe, 3-4. Calc, for C36H51012N,HN03 : 1 C, 57-4; H, 7-0; 6MeO, 24-75; NMe, 3-9%). The hydriodide separates from hot dilute alcohol in truncated a prisms, m. p. 230° (Found for air-dry salt : loss at 100° in a vacuum, I 2-5. Calc, for C36H51012N,HI,H20V; H20, 2-2%). The chloroaurate had m. p. 233°. The data recorded above for these four salts agree as well as can | be expected with those recorded by previous investigators : it is v well knowm that the melting points of the “ aconitines ” and their 4 salts vary with the rate of heating and the small discrepancies in 4 both directions now found are no doubt due to this cause. Differ- tt ences in the amounts of water of crystallisation found in the ;ii hvdrobromide (3 instead of 2H20) and nitrate (1 instead of 3H20) f from those recorded by Dunstan and Carr (loc. cit.) are due to the$