236 



THE ALUMNI JOURNAL. 



THE CONSTITUTION OF PSEUDACONI = 

 TINE.-PRELiniNARY NOTICE. 



By WYNDHAM R. DUNSTAN, F. R. S., and 

 FRANCIS H. CARR. 



Pseudaconitine is the name given by 

 Alder Wright to the highly toxic alka- 

 loid contained in Nepaul aconite {Aconi- 

 tum ferox). It is a crystalline base, 

 melting at 104-105 , whose composition 

 is expressed by the formula C 36 H 49 N0 12 . 

 When hydrolysed, it furnishes, accord- 

 ing to Alder Wright and Luff ( Trans. 

 1878) pseudaconine, and dimethylpro- 

 tocatechuic acid (veratic acid) C 36 H 49 

 NO 12 +H 2 O=C 27 H 41 NO 9 + C 9 H 10 O 4 . The 

 authors are engaged in a re- investigation 

 ot this alkaloid in the light of their recent 

 work on the constitution of aconitine de- 

 rived from Aconihim napdlus ( Trans. , 

 1894. 176, 290). 



The pseudaconitine employed by the 

 the authors was extracted from the roots 

 of Aconitum ferox, some of which were 

 provided by the Government of India, 

 through the Imperial Institute. The 

 highly-purified crystalline base melted at 

 201 , that is, nearly a ioo° higher than 

 the point recorded by Wright and Luff. 

 This melting point was not changed by 

 fractional crystallization. 



When heated slightly above its melt- 

 ing point, pseudaconitine loses a molecu- 

 lar proportion of acetic acid, leaving a 

 new base which it is proposed to name 

 pyropseudaconitine. This alkaloid, or 

 hydrolysis, loses a molecular proportion 

 of dimethylprotocatechechuic acid, fur 

 nishing pyropseudaconine. 



On complete hydrolysis with alkali, 

 pseudaconitine yields, in addition to the 

 dimethyl protocatechuic acid observed by 

 Wright and Luff, a molecular proportion 

 of acetic acid, which was identified and 

 estimated in the manner described in the 

 authors' previous paper on aconitine. 



When pseudaconitine sulphate is heat- 

 ed in a closed tube with water it suffers, 



like aconitine, partial hydrolysis, the 

 acetyl group alone being eliminated, pro- 

 ducing a molecular proportion of acetic 

 acid. In this action, a new alkaloid is 

 formed, corresponding with the benza- 

 conine derived in a similar manner irom 

 aconitine, which the authors propose to 

 name veratrylpseudaconine. This sub- 

 stance is a crystalline base (m. p. 18 1°) 

 which, when hydrolysed, furnishes 

 pseudaconine and dimethylprotocatechuic 

 acid (veratic acid). 



There is, therefore, a close resemblance 

 between the constitution of aconitine, 

 and of pseudaconitine, both alkaloids un- 

 dergoing hydrolysis in a similar manner. 

 The molecule of each alkaioid contains an 

 acetyl group, but in pseudaconitine the 

 benzoyl group of aconitine is replaced by 

 the veratryl group, aconitine being ace- 

 tylbenzaconine, and pseudaconitine, ace- 

 tylveratrylpseudaconine. As far as the 

 authors' investigation has proceeded^ 

 pseudaconine appears to be distinctly dif- 

 ferent from the aconine derived from 

 aconitine. There is little reason at pres- 

 ent to doubt that the crystalline highly 

 active alkaloid isolated by the authors is 

 identical with Wright's pseudaconitine, 

 but further evidence on this point is being 

 obtained. — Proceedings of the Chemical 

 Society. 



THE OXIMES OF BENZALDEHYDE AND 

 THEIR DERIVATIVES. 



By C. M. LUXMOORE. B. Sc 



The paper contains an account of ex- 

 periments undertaken with a view to 

 throwing further light on the isomerism 

 of the aromatic aldoximes. As already 

 mentioned in a preliminary note by Prof. 

 Dunstan and the author (Proc, 1893, 

 253), in examining the mechanism of the 

 change of benzantialdoxime into benz- 

 synaldoxime by hydrogen chloride, the 

 previously unknown benzantialdoxime 

 hydrochloride has been isolated ; on solu- 

 tion it is converted into the syn-hydro- 



