148 



THE CHEMICAL INVESTIGATION OF SOME POISON- 

 OUS PLANTS IN THE N.O. SOLANACE^. 



Part ii. Xicotiana suaveolens, and the Identification 



OF its Alkaloid. 



By James M. Petrie, D.Sc, F.I.C, Linnean Macleay Fellow 



of the Society in Biochemistry. 

 (From the Physiological Laboratory of the University of Sydney.) 



Nicotiana suaveolens Lelim., the " native tobacco " of Austra- 

 lia, and tlie only endemic species, is plentiful in the interior of 

 this State. It grows about three feet high, and is often a 

 troublesome weed in the stock country. It is a drought-resistant 

 plant, and spreads over large tracts of land in the dry seasons. 

 Hence it is that, when grass and other fodder plants are withered 

 or overrun by this weed, it is often the only green plant left 

 available to starving animals. It is then readily eaten by stock, 

 and, according to the reports of the owners and Inspectors, the 

 results are variable. Though in many cases no apparent harm 

 has followed, there is still a consensus of opinion among stock- 

 men, that many of their losses must be attributed to this plant. 



The only record of tests having been made on this species, is a 

 paper by Dr. Bancroft (Proc. Roy. Soc. Queens., iv., 1887, p. 9), 

 in which he states that the physiological effect of the extracts on 

 animals resembled that of extracts of true tobacco and of pituri. 



The following is the account of a chemical investigation of 

 this plant, which was undertaken to decide definitely the nature 

 of its active principle, and also to determine whether this con- 

 stituent is present in quantity sufficient to cause death. 



Extraction of active principle:— For this purpose, plants were 

 collected in the midsummers of 1911, 1912, and 1913, chiefly 

 from the dry North-West. Through Chief Inspector Symons, of 

 the Stock Department, a sample was received from Narrabri. 

 This, on its arrival, contained 37 par cent, of moisture, and con- 

 sisted of leaves, stalks, and roots. The whole sample was ex- 

 tracted with alcohol, and the solvent afterwards removed by 



