CHOLINE. 247 



which may be considered as the anhydride of the acid corresponding to 

 choline. Muscarine and betaine can be obtained from choline on oxida- 

 tion. Choline yields trimethylamine as a decomposition product, and this 

 seems to be formed in the transformation of choline in the animal body. 



Choline occurs in the plant kingdom as well as in the animal kingdom. 

 MOTT and HALLIBURTON have repeatedly found choline in the blood in 

 degenerative diseases of the nervous system. It was first shown also in 

 normal blood by MARINO Zuco, 1 and this investigator first found it in 

 the suprarenal capsule, but designated it neurine. LOHMANN found it 

 later in this organ, and recently it has been found in various organs by 

 other investigators, especially by C. SCHWARZ and v. FURTH. The fact 

 that choline is a cleavage product of lecithin in the animal, and that it is 

 antagonistic to adrenalin (of the suprarenal capsule) by its depressing 

 action upon the blood pressure, and that it has an exciting action upon 

 certain secretions (LOHMANN, . THEISSIER and THEVENOT, v. FURTH 

 and SCHWARZ 2 ), gives choline great physiological importance. The 

 physiological action of choline is still very much disputed. 



Choline is a syrupy fluid, readily miscible with absolute alcohol. 

 Hydrochloric acid gives with it a compound which is very soluble in water 

 and alcohol, but insoluble in ether, chloroform, and benzene. This com- 

 pound forms a double combination with platinum chloride, is soluble in 

 water, insoluble in absolute alcohol and ether, and crystallizing from 

 water in monoclinic system and this form is strongly double-refractive. 

 From a mixture of water and alcohol it crystallizes in the regular form 

 (octahedral). Both forms can be changed from one to the other 

 and are used according to KAUFFMANN and VORLANDER 3 in the detec- 

 tion of choline. Choline also forms a crystalline double compound 

 with mercuric chloride and with gold chloride. Choline is precipitated 

 by potassium iodide and iodine (GULEWITSCH), and potassium triiodide 

 can be used for the quantitative estimation of this base (STANEK 4 ). 

 On heating the free base it decomposes into trimethylamine, ethylene 

 oxide, and water. 



In preparing choline from lecithins, and also for the detection of 

 lecithin in an alcohol-ether extract, proceed as follows: The residue from 



1 Mott and Halliburton, Philos. Trans., Ser. B, 191 (1899) and 194 (1901); Marino 

 Zuco, see Maly's Jahresber., 24, pp. 181 and 698. 



2 Lohmann, Pfliiger's Arch., 118 and 122; v. Fiirth and Schwarz, ibid., 124, which 

 also contains the literature. 



3 See Gulewitsch, Zeitschr. f. physiol. Chem., 24; Kauffmann and Vorlander, Ber. 

 d. d. chem. Gesellsch., 43. 



4 Gulewitsch, Zeitschr. f. physiol. Chem., 24; Stanek, ibid., 56. In regard to the 

 quantitative estimation see also Kiesel, ibid., 53; Stanek, ibid., 54; Moruzzi, ibid., 

 55; and MacLean, ibid., 55. 



