Am  jour.  Pharm.  \        Variations  in  Nux  Vomica. 
bept.,  191R.       >  ^00 
for  spraying  oily  solutions  of  Dichloramine  T.  (Made  by  Randall- 
Faichney  Co.,  Boston,  Mass.) 
VARIATIONS  IN  NUX  VOMICA  AND  ITS 
PREPARATIONS.1 
By  Hugo  H.  Schaefer. 
One  of  the  more  important  changes  in  the  U.  S.  P.  IX  as  com- 
pared to  the  former  revision  is  that  of  the  alkaloidal  requirement 
for  nux  vomica  and  its  assay  process.  The  former  requirement 
called  for  1.25  per  cent,  strychnine  and  in  its  determination  the 
well-known  assay  process  was  used  in  which  the  total  alkaloids  are 
extracted,  the  brucine  destroyed,  by  means  of  nitric  acid  and  the 
remaining  alkaloid  calculated  as  strychnine.  In  the  U.  S.  P.  IX  the 
requirements  are  for  2.5  per  cent,  total  alkaloids  and  the  assay  proc- 
ess is  of  course  based  on  the  simple  extraction  and  titrating  of  all 
the  alkaloids  of  nux  vomica. 
It  was  found  by  the  author  that  a  greater  percentage  of  samples 
of  nux  vomica  met  the  requirements  of  the  new  pharmacopoeia  than 
that  of  the  old.  In  other  words  that  2.5  percent,  total  alkaloids  was 
a  lower  standard  than  1.25  per  cent,  strychnine.  In  order  to  defi- 
nitely determine  this  question  a  number  of  samples  of  powdered  nux 
vomica  were  taken  and  assayed  according  to  the  U.  S.  P.  IX  for 
total  alkaloids.  After  titrating  the  latter  the  solution  was  made 
alkaline  with  ammonia  water,  completely  shaken  out  with  chlo- 
roform, the  latter  evaporated  and  the  residue  taken  up  with  15  mils 
of  3  per  cent,  sulphuric  acid.  This  solution  was  now  treated  with 
nitric  acid  to  destroy  the  brucine  and  the  assay  completed  as  de- 
scribed in  the  U.  S.  P.  VIII,  for  the  determination  of  strychnine. 
This  data  so  obtained  gave  the  total  alkaloidal  content,  the  per- 
centage of  brucine  and  that  of  strychnine  in  nux  vomica,  it  being 
taken  for  granted  that  the  other  alkaloids  present  appear  in  so  small 
a  quantity  as  to  justify  their  not  being  considered.  The  results  ob- 
tained were  as  follows : 
1  Presented  at  the  meeting  of  the  New  Jersey  Pharmaceutical  Associa- 
tion, Spring  Lake,  X.  J.,  June,  1918. 
