FOLIA ACONITT. 11 



FOLIA ACONITI. 



Herba AcoiiUa; Aconite Leaves ; F. Feuilles dAconit; G., Eisenhvi-' 

 h'aut, StwiTtihutkraut 



Botanical Origin — Aconituni NapeUvs L., see preceding article. 



History — Aconite herb was introduced into medicine in 1762 by 

 Storck of Vienna ; and was admitted into the London Pharmacopoeia 

 in 1788. 



Description — The plant produces a stiff, upright, herbaceous, 

 simple stem, 3 to 4 feet high, clothed as to its upper half with spread- 

 ing, dark gi-een leaves, which are paler on their under side. The leaves 

 are from 3 to 5 or more inches in length, nearly half consisting of the 

 channelled petiole. The blade, which has a roundish outline, is divided 

 down to the petiole into three principal segments, of which the latei-al 

 ai-e subdivided into two or even three, the lowest being smaller and 

 less regular than the others. The segments, which are trifid, are 

 finall}' cut into 2 to 5 strap-shaped pointed lobes. Tlie leaves are 

 usually glabrous, and are deeply impressed on their upper side by 

 veins which run with but few branchings to the tip of every lobe. 

 The uppermost leaves are more simple than the lower, and gradually 

 pass into the bracts of the beautiful raceme of dull-blue helmet-shaped 

 flowers which crowns the stem. 



The leaves have when bruised a herby smeU ; their taste is at first 

 mawkish but afterwards pei-sistently burning. 



Chemical Composition — The leaves contain aconitine in small 

 proportion and also aconitic acid, — the latter in combination with Hme. 



Aconitic Acid, C^H^O*, discovered by Peschier in 1820 in somewhat 

 considerable quantity in the leaves of aconite, occurs also in those of 

 larkspur, and is identical with the Equisetic Acid of Braconnot and 

 the Citridic Acid of Baup.^ It has been stated to be present likewise 

 in Adonis vemalis L. (Linderos, 1876, — 10 per cent, of dried leaves 1) 

 and in the sugar cane (Behr, 1877). 



Schoonbroodt'^ (1867) on treating the extract with a mixture of 

 alcohol and ether, obtained acicular crystals, which he thought were the 

 so-caUed Aconella of Smith. He further found that the distillate of 

 the plant was devoid of odour, but was acid, and had a buraing taste. 

 By saturation with an alkali he obtained from it a crj'staUine substance, 

 soluble in water, and having a very acrid taste. Experiments made 

 about the same time by Groves,' a careful observer, led to opposite 

 results. He distilled on different occasions both fresh herb and fresh 

 roots, and obtained a neutral distillate, smelling and tasting strongly 

 of the plant, but entirely devoid of acridity. Hence he concluded that 

 A. Napellus contains no volatile acrid principle. 



In an extract of aconite that has been long kept, the microscope 

 reveals crystals of aconitate of calcium, as well as of sal-ammoniac. 



The leaves contain a small proportion of sugar, and a tannin striking 



^Gmelin, Chemistry, xi. (1857) 402. (1869) 82, also Jahresbericht of Wiggers 



Wittstein's Vierteljahresschri/t, xviii. and Husemarm (1869) 12. 



"Pharm, Joum. viii. (1867) 118. 



