Am.  Jour.  Pharm.\ 
Sept.,  1887.  J 
The  Chemistry  of  Cacur. 
459 
THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  "CACUR." 
By  G.  Armstrong  Atkinson,  M.  D., 
Assistant  to  the  Professor  of  Materia  MeUica,  University  of  Edinburgh. 
(From  the  Pharmacological  Laboratory  of  the  University). 
In  the  Edinburgh  Medical  Journal  for  July,  1886,1  I  published  a 
note  on  the  action  of  cacur,  cacuo  or  small  bitter  apple,  cacur  being 
the  Kaffir  name  for  the  fruit  of  the  Cucumis  myriocarpus  (Cucurbi- 
tacea?).  In  this  paper  it  ay  as  shown  that  the  fruit  in  small  closes  is 
purgative,  in  larger  emetic,  and  if  sufficient  of  the  drug  be  retained 
after  vomiting  has  occurred  purgation  also  ensues.  The  action  is 
somewhat  like  that  of  colocynth  as  far  as  its  purgative  qualities  go, 
but  it  differs  in  that  it  more  readily  induces  vomiting.  The  supply  of 
the  drug  at  the  time  these  experiments  were  carried  out  was  too  small 
to  permit  of  any  chemical  examination.  Through  the  kindness  of 
Mr.  J.  A.  B.  Bayley,  a  further  supply  of  the  fruit  was  forwarded  me 
some  months  ago,  and  as  from  experiments  with  other  parts  of  the 
plant  I  had  satisfied  myself  that  the  fruit  alone  was  active,  it  only  was 
examined  in  detail.  The  fruit  is  a  pepo,  the  pepoes  are  caducous, 
subglobose,  and  vary  in  size  from  small  to  very  large  gooseberries, 
which  they  resemble  in  form.  When  unripe  they  are  green,  when  ma- 
ture yellow,  and  are  beset  somewhat  sparingly  with  short  soft  prickles. 
The  South  African  natives  use  them  principally  as  an  emetic,  gener- 
ally in  their  green  or  yellowish-green  state.  The  fruit  does  not  spon- 
taneously expel  its  contents.  Each  pepo  weighs  from  50  to  100,  or 
even  130  grains,  the  average  weight  being  from  70  to  80  grains.  The 
placenta?  are  parietal,  and  bear  numerous  ovoid,  flattened,  ex-albumi- 
nous, almost  white  seeds,  the  testae  of  which  have  a  faint  bitterness, 
apparently  absorbed  from  the  surrounding  pulp.  The  seeds  constitute 
about  14  or  15  per  cent,  by  weight  of  the  fresh  fruit.  The  pulp  is 
very  watery  and  has  a  faint  cucumber-like  odor,  and  a  very  bitter 
taste.  The  rind  is  soft  and  thin,  and  can  only  be  peeled  off  with  con- 
siderable difficulty ;  its  inner  layers  have  the  same  odor  and  bitter 
taste  which  characterizes  the  pulp.  The  fpulp  and  rind  when  dried 
lose  weight  very  markedly ;  1000  grains  of  rind  and  pulp  from  which 
the  seeds  had  been  removed  when  dried  so  as  to  be  powdered,  weighed 
only  53  grains.  In  drying  it  is  necessary  to  use  a  low  heat  or  the  ac- 
tive principle  will  be  decomposed.    The  usual  purgative  dose  em- 
1  See  A.mer.  Jour.  Phar.,  Dec,  18S6,  p.  614. 
