642 SCIENTIFIC AND APPLIED PHARMACOGNOSY 



tagena and Savanilla, and are known commercially as Cartagena 

 Ipecac. Two commercial sub-varieties of Ipecac are also recognized, 

 depending upon the proportion of wood and bark in the drug. Speci- 

 cimens in which the wood is more pronounced are known as " wiry 

 roots," while those which are characterized by a thicker bark are 

 called " fancy " or " Bold " roots. 



Rio or Brazilian Ipecac. Cylindrical, more or less tortuous, 5 to 

 15 cm. in length, 1 to 5 mm. in diameter; externally dark brown, 

 irregularly annulate, sometimes transversely fissured, having occa- 

 sional rootlets or rootlet-scars; fracture of bark brittle, of the wood 

 tough ; internally, bark light brown, 0.5 to 1 mm. in thickness, easily 

 separable from the dark-yellow, non-porous wood; odor slight; taste 

 bitter, acrid. 



Stems cylindrical, attaining a length of 10 cm. and a thickness 

 of 2 mm., dark brown, finely longitudinally wrinkled and having 

 a few elliptical scars. 



INNER STRUCTURE. See Fig. 285. 



POWDER. (Fig. 286.) Light brown, or dark yellow; starch 

 grains numerous, 2- to 6-compound, the individual grains spheroidal 

 or polyhedral, from 0.003 to 0.017 mm. in diameter; calcium oxalate 

 in raphides from 0.015 to 0.040 mm. in length; tracheids having 

 either bordered pores or oblique slit-like pores. The stem bark shows 

 a few, slightly elongated stone cells, from 0.030 to 0.045 mm. in length, 

 having thick lignified walls and simple, branching pores. 



An aqueous infusion of ipecac gives a copious precipitate with 

 potassio-mercuric iodide solution; a hydro-alcoholic infusion gives 

 a yellow precipitate with picric acid, or if hydrochloric acid and 

 potassium chlorate are added, the solution becomes orange-red with a 

 reddish fluorescence. 



Cartagena Ipecac closely resembles the Rio or Brazilian ipecac, 

 but the roots are uniformly thicker (4 to 7 mm. in diameter), of a 

 brownish-gray color, and the annulations are less pronounced. 



The stems are usually more slender, 5 to 10 cm. in length, 1 to 

 1.5 mm. in diameter, nearly smooth or longitudinally wrinkled; 

 bark 0.1 mm. in thickness, with bast fibers either single or in groups; 

 pith distinct, 0.5 mm. in diameter. 



In the powder of Cartagena Ipecac the starch grains are uni- 

 formly larger, being from 0.004 to 0.015 mm. in diameter, other- 

 wise the tissues and cell contents resemble those of Rio Ipecac. 



Constituents. Ipecac contains three alkaloids (2 to 3 per cent) 

 emetine, cephaeline and psychotrine, that are said to be contained 

 chiefly in the bark, which makes up about 90 per cent of the drug. 



