CASTOR OIL 571 



Oleum Kicinl Castor Oil. (U. S. & B. P.) 



Synonym. — Oleum palmse christi, huile de ricin, Fr.; 

 ricinusol, G. 



A fixed oil expressed from the seed of Eicinus communis 

 Linne (nat. ord. Euphorbiacese). 



Habitat. — India. Cultivated in many countries. 



Properties. — A pale, yellowish and almost odorless, 

 transparent, viscid fluid, having a bland, afterwards slightly 

 acrid, and generally offensive taste. Spec. gr. 0.950-0.970 at 

 59° F. Soluble in equal volumes of alcohol, and in all pro- 

 portions in absolute alcohol, or in glacial acetic acid ; also 

 soluble in three times its volume of a mixture of 19 volumes 

 of alcohol and 1 volume of water (absence of more than about 

 6 per cent, of most other fixed oils). 



Constituents. — 1, ricinolein, or ricinoleic acid glyceride, 

 C3H5 {Gj^i'KsiOs)^; 2, an acrid principle; 3, palmitin, stearin 

 and myristin. 



Dose.~B.. & C, Oi. (500.); Sh. & Sw., 5 ii.-iv. (60.-120.) ; 

 D. & Cats, 5 i.-ii. (30.-60.) ; poultry, 3 i. (4.). 



Castor Oil Seeds. — These are not official. The name 

 Eiicinus is applied to the plant because of the resemblance 

 of the seed to a ricinus, or tick. The seeds are of a shiny, 

 gray color, marked with brownish spots and streaks. They 

 are about the size of small beans (17 Mm. X 8 Mm.), ovoid, 

 flattened, and white inside. They contain 50 per cent, of 

 oil, and an acrid, poisonous substance. Three seeds have 

 caused death in man, and they are ten times more purgative 

 than the oil. 



Action and Uses. — Castor oil probably contains some 

 unknown purgative principle which exists in larger amount 

 in the seeds. It is often taught that ricinoleic acid, derived 

 from the decomposition of ricinolein in the bowels, produces 

 purgation. This is apparently not the case. Castor oil is 

 mild, but has a more decided purgative action than linseed 

 oil and often occasions griping. It acts in 4 or 5 hours and 

 ■will purge when absorbed from the skin or rectum. Castor 



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