294 



SCIENCE PROGRESS 



The foregoing considerations show that the morphine mole- 

 cule may be regarded as built up from the complexes : 

 (Phenolic) HO 



and 



— C H 2 — C H» 



I 



N— 



CH 3 



(Alcoholic) HO' 



which together will be seen to contain four hydrogen atoms 

 less than morphine. 



It remains to be shown — 



(a) How these additional hydrogen atoms are distributed ; 



(b) The manner in which the two complexes are united. 

 Inasmuch as nucleus 3 contains a hydroxyl group possessing 

 alcoholic properties, it would appear to be of the nature of a 

 reduced or partially reduced benzenoid ring; and the work of 

 Knorr and Schneider, 1 and of Pschorr and Kuhtz, 2 shows that 

 nucleus 2 must be in a similar condition. These investigators 

 found that methoxy^acetoxyphenanthrene, which is obtained 

 from hydroxycodeine in a manner similar to that whereby 

 methoxyacetoxyphenanthrene is derived from codeine, loses its 

 additional acetyl group on oxidation, and is converted into 

 methoxyacetoxyphenanthraquinone (cf. p. 285). 



CHaO 

 CH 3 CO . O 



CH 3 



CH3CO . O 



or 



O.COCH, 



O.COCH, 



CH 3 

 CH 3 C0.0 



This acetyl group must, therefore, be attached to one of the 

 1 Ber. 39, 1414. 2 Ibid. 39, 3137. 



