254 



Dr. A. E. Everest. 



Calcatrippae," obtained from these flowers a complex diglucoside anthocyan, 

 to which they gave the name delphinin, which, on hydrolysis, yielded not the 

 anthocyan that would correspond to kaempferol (i.e. pelargonidin), but that 

 corresponding to myricetin, viz., delphinidin. 



In view of the fact that the colour descriptions of the flowers used do not 

 coincide,* and that Willstatter and Mieg (loc. eit.) state that other varieties 

 of Delphinium appear to contain colouring matters which differ, at least, 

 from their glucoside delphinin, it is not certain whether the results of these 

 researches can be safely used as evidence that in Delphinium consolida, L., 

 the anthocyan present is not that which corresponds to the flavonol derivative 

 (yellow sap-pigment) that is also present. 



Wheldalef has somewhat fully investigated the Mendelian factors in 

 the Antirrhinum, and, in the course of her work, has isolated apigenin 

 and luteolin from ivory and yellow varieties respectively, and extracted 

 anthocyan pigments from various red-coloured flowers of the same 

 plant. Here the evidence is insufficient, as Wheldale has not as yet 

 obtained the anthocyan pigments in a crystalline condition nor identified 

 their structure ; moreover, although she assumes that certain of the 

 red flowers contain apigenin and luteolin in addition to the' anthocyan 

 pigments, it does not appear that she has isolated the flavone derivatives 

 actually from the red flowers, but only from ivory or yellow specimens. It 

 is to be hoped that Wheldale will continue her work on these products, 

 particularly in view of the fact that, if the anthocyan pigments are 

 produced in Nature md flavone, or flavonol, derivatives, and her assumption 

 that the red flowers contain apigenin and luteolin, as do the ivory and 

 yellow, proves correct, then the anthocyan pigments she has under investiga- 

 tion should be members of a new series which are related to flavone 

 derivatives, not, as are all the anthoeyans thus far described, to flavonols. 



The impossibility of assuming that, because a particular pigment is present 

 in the flowers of one variety of a plant it will occur in those of other 



* The author having submitted a sample of the purple Delphinium used by Willstatter 

 and Mieg, to Prof. A. G. Perkin, he kindly confirmed the fact that it did not coincide 

 with the product used by him. 



t ' Journ. Genetics,' vo). 4, p. 109 (1914) ; and earlier papers referred to therein. 



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