ASPIDIUM 



615 



SECTION XIY.— VEGETABLE DEUGS KILLING 

 PARASITES. 



Class 1.— Used to Destroy Tape-Worms. 



AspiDiUM. Aspidium. (U. S. P.) 



Synonym. — Filix mas, B.P.; radix filicis maris, male> 

 fern, male shield fern, E.; rhizome (racine) de fougere mdle, - 

 Fr. ; wurmfarnwurzel, waldfarnwurzel, johanniswurzel, G. •. 

 rhizoma filicis, P.G. 



The rhizome of Dryopteris Felix-mas Schott, and of 

 Dryopteris Marginalis Asa Gray (nafc. ord. Filices). 



Habitat. — D. filix-mas, Europe ; D. marginalis, U. S. 



Description. — From 5 to 15 Cm. long, 10 to 25 Mm. in 

 thickness, and, together with the closely imbricated, dark- 

 brown, roundish, and slightly curved stipe-remnants, 50 to 

 75 Mm. in diameter ; densely curved, with brown, glossy, 

 transparent and soft, chaffy scales ; internally pale-green ; 

 rather spongy ; vascular bundles about ten (Dryopteris filix- 

 mas) or six (Dryopteris marginalis) in number, arranged in 

 an interrupted circle ; odor slight^ but disagreeable ; taste 

 sweetish, acrid, somewhat bitter, astringent and nauseous. 



Constituents. — The active principles are : (1) filicic acid 

 (C35H42O13), a white, amorphous crystalline substance, and a 

 series of neutral bodies, as aspidin, aspidinin (derivatives of 

 phloroglucin). To filicic acid and these latter the action of 

 aspidium is due. There are also : (2) a fixed oil, 6 per cent.j 

 (3) resin, 4 per cent.; (4) filicin (CasH^oOu), a crystalline 

 principle soluble in chloroform, benzol, fixed and volatile 

 oils ; (5) filix-red, a coloring matter ; (6) a small quantity of 

 a volatile oil. 



Dose.—B.. &. a, ! v.-vi. (150.-180.); Sh., § ii.-iv. (60.-120.); 

 Lambs, 3i.-ii. (4.-8.); D. & C, §ss.-i. (15.-30.). 



PREPAEATION 



Oleoresina Aspidii. Oleoresin of Aspidium. (U. S. P.) 

 Made by percolation with ether, distillation and evaporation of the 

 ether. Dose (also of the extractum filicis liquidum, B.P.) — H. & C, 

 3 iii.-vi. (13.-34.); Sh. & Sw., 3 i.-ii. (4.-8.) ; D. & C, tiixv.- 3 i. (1. 4.) 



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