1893.] 



a Research on their Pharmacology. 



403 



indicated their action on the spinal cord to be paramount. The 

 reflex irritability of the cord is greatly increased until the muscles of 

 the limbs are thrown into tetanic convulsions. • . 



The presence of the NOH group is, however, felt by the vessel 

 walls of the excised kidney, and is revealed by the much more power- 

 ful vaso- dilating action exerted by salicylaldoxime than by salicyl- 

 aldehyde. 



Also in the action of these two aldoximes on the heart the influence 

 of the NOH group is probably to be traced in the fact that no 

 retardation of rhythm occurs as is seen in perfusion experiments with 

 the aromatic aldehydes, though in all other respects the cardiac 

 actions of these two classes of aromatics are identical. 



Acetoxime, (CH 3 ) 2 :C:N-OH. 

 Isonitrosoacetone, CHVCO'CHiN'OH. 



I have investigated the physiological actions of these substances by 

 the same methods as those employed for the previously described 

 bodies, and have found their actions to closely resemble those of the 

 fatty aldoximes. The structural difference is not borne out pharma- 

 cologically. Acetoxime more especially repeats the actions of propyl- 

 aldoxime, and in the presence of this fact it is interesting to observe 

 that the molecular weight of acetoxime is exactly equivalent to that 

 of propylaldoxime. 



Isonitrosoacetone finds its parallel intermediate to propylaldoxime 

 and isobutylaldoxime, in some of its actions approaching the former, 

 but, on the whole, being nearer to the latter. 



In molecular weight isonitrosoacetone finds its exact equivalent in 

 isobutylaldoxime. 



Acetone, CH 3 -COCH 3 . 



I have examined the actions of acetone on the isolated tissues and 

 organs, and have found that, except in the case of voluntary 

 muscle, these actions differ in little from those of propylaldehyde. 

 Nervous depression is the cardinal feature of the general action of 

 acetone on the frog. Injections have paralysed the spinal cord. In 

 muscle-nerve preparations acetone quickly depresses the irritability of 

 the nervous path. 



It is in its action on voluntary muscle that acetone diverges most 

 from the aldehydes. Pure acetone causes no contracture in muscle, 

 and the muscle irritability is depressed rather than the contractility. 

 In fact, the action of acetone on voluntary muscle I have found to 

 closely resemble that of ethyl alcohol. 



On the vessels of the tortoise and excised sheep's kidney, acetone 

 has not been found to possess any action, beyond at times an equivocal 

 constriction. 



