5o8 BOTANY AND PHARMACOGNOSY. 



Inner Structure. See Fig. 223. 



Constituents. Resin (ofificial as Resin of Podophyllum) 

 3.5 to 5 per cent., consisting of two poisonous principles; (a) 

 podophyllotoxin, 20 per cent., occurring in white crystals that 

 are sparingly soluble in water and yield on treatment with water 

 podophyllic acid and picropodophyllin ; and (b) picropodophyl- 

 lin (an isomer of podophyllotoxin), which crystallizes in needles 

 and is insoluble in water but soluble in 90 to 95 per cent, alcohol. 

 The resin also contains a yellow crystalline coloring principle 

 resembling quercetin, a green fixed oil and podophyllic acid. The 

 rhizome also contains a purgative resin, podophylloresin ; consid- 

 erable starch, and some gallic acid. 



Allied Plants. The rhizome of Podophyllum Emodi, a 

 plant growing on the lower slopes of the Himalayas, is larger and 

 yields 11.4 to 12 per cent, of resin, which consists of but half as 

 much podophyllotoxin as the resin obtained from P. pcltatum. 



SANGUINARIA. BLOODROOT. The rhizome of San- 

 guinaria canadensis (Fam. Papaveraceas), a perennial herb (Fig. 

 148) indigenous to the Eastern and Central United States and 

 Canada (p. 280). The rhizome should be collected in July or 

 August and dried. 



Description. Horizontal, irregularly cylindrical, flattened, 

 sometimes branched, 2.5 to 6 cm. long, 5 to 10 mm. in diameter; 

 externally dark brown, slightly annulate, with few buds or stem- 

 scars on upper surface and numerous root-scars on lower surface ; 

 fracture short and somewhat waxy ; internally, bark dark brown, 

 about 0.5 mm. thick, wood and pith with numerous reddish resin- 

 cells ; odor slight ; taste bitter and acrid. 



Shriveled rhizomes which are gray internally and free from 

 starch should be rejected. 



Constituents. The drug contains a number of alkaloids, of 

 which the most important is sanguinarine; it occurs to the 

 extent of about i per cent., crystallizes in colorless needles and 

 yields reddish salts wdth nitric or sulphuric acid. The other 

 alkaloids include chelerythrine, which forms yellowish salts ; 

 protopine, also found in other plants (p. 282), and (3- and y-homo- 

 chelidonine, which, like the last two alkaloids, are found in Cheli- 

 donium and some other plants (p. 281). In addition, the drug 



