Am.  Jour.  Pharm.  \ 
March,  1893.  J 
Dioscorea  Batatas. 
123 
Both  had  an  odor  resembling  oil  of  origanum.  They  gave  evidence 
by  their  reactions  with  iodine  and  bromine  of  containing  large  pro- 
portions of  terpene.  On  careful  heating  both  oils  commenced  to 
boil  at  1300  C. 
DIOSCOREA  BATATAS. 
By  Frkdrick  Wm.  Meink. 
Contribution  from  the  Chemical  Laboratory  of  the  Philadelphia  College  of  Pharmacy, 
No.  121. 
Read  before  the  College  at  the  Pharmaceutical  Meeting,  February  21. 
The  plant  is  indigenous  to  Central  Asia,  and  belongs  to  the  nat- 
ural order  of  Dioscoreacese.  It  possesses  tubers  of  various  sizes, 
of  a  gray-brown  color,  and  resembling  small  potatoes  in  appearance. 
The  tubers  were  obtained  from  Professor  Maisch,  and  by  his 
request  subjected  to  analysis. 
Fifty  grams  of  the  drug  were  bruised  in  a  mortar,  and  then 
extracted  with  100  cc.  of  95  per  cent,  alcohol,  by  macerating  for  24 
hours.  This  alcoholic  extract  was  then  drawn  off,  and  200  cc.  of 
absolute  alcohol  were  added  to  the  drug,  in  two  portions,  each  being 
allowed  to  macerate  for  24  hours.  These  three  alcoholic  extracts 
were  mixed,  the  alcohol  recovered  by  distillation,  and  the  extract 
evaporated  almost  to  dryness,  when  it  was  treated  with  petroleum 
ether,  so  as  to  remove  the  fat  and  wax.  The  former  was  separated 
from  the  wax  by  digestion  with  95  per  cent,  alcohol,  and  after  the 
evaporation  of  the  alcohol,  the  fat  was  found  to  melt  at  ioo°  C, 
and  to  saponify  with  potassium  hydrate.  The  wax  was  taken  up 
with  hot  absolute  alcohol,  and  allowed  to  crystallize. 
The  alcoholic  extract,  after  treatment  with  petroleum  ether,  was 
then  taken  up  with  25  cc.  of  acidulated  water,  and  transferred  to  a 
separating  funnel,  and  shaken  successively  with  petroleum  ether, 
chloroform  and  stronger  ether,  and  these  allowed  to  evaporate  and 
then  taken  up  with  acidulated  water,  and  tested  for  alkaloid  and 
glucoside.  Reagents  for  alkaloids  gave  no  reactions,  but  the  chloro- 
form extract  gave  the  characteristic  reaction  when  treated  with 
Fehling's  solution.  The  solution  in  the  separating  funnel  was  then 
made  alkaline  with  sodium  hydrate,  and  shaken  successively  with 
the  solvents  mentioned  before  ;  the  separated  liquids  being  treated 
in  the  manner  indicated.  Reactions  for  alkaloid  were  again  not 
obtained,  but  for  glucoside  the  stronger  ether  extract  gave  the 
characteristic  reaction  when  treated  with  Fehling's  solution. 
