m.  Jour.  Pharm. ) 
:  ;April,  1911.  / 
Active  Principle  of  Ergot. 
that  practically  every  preparation  introduced  by  chemists  or 
pharmacologists  has  been  endorsed  by  some  clinicians  as  useful 
in  labor.  This  may  perhaps  be  explained  on  the  basis  that  all 
such  preparations  have  carried  mechanically  with  them  some  of 
the  active  constituents  of  ergot,  but  the  conditions  under  which  labor 
pains  intermit  and  recur  are  so  little  understood  that  it  is  rather 
difficult  to  always  show  the  relation  of  ergot  to  such  pains. 
A  good  review  of  this  literature  can  be  found  in  A.  Bennecke. 
Der  heutige  Stand  der  Mutterkornfrage.  Archiv.  f.  GyncckoL, 
vol.  38,  p.  669,  1907. 
REFERENCES. 
^  Stearns,  J. :  Answer  to  Dr.  Spalding's  letter  on  ergot.  New  England 
Journal  Med.  and  Surg.,  vol.  7,  p.  216,  1818. 
^Journ.  d.  prakt.  Heilkunde,  vol.  45,  pt.  5,  p.  68,  1817. 
'Quoted  by  Orfila,  P.    Traite  des  poisons,  vol.  2,  p.  427,  1818. 
*  Tessier.  Mem.  sur  les  effets  du  seigle  ergote.  Hist.  Soc.  Roy.  de 
Med.,  Paris,  1777-78,  vol.  2,  p.  587,  1780;  Memoire  sur  la  maladie  du 
seigle  appellee  ergot.  Hist.  Soc.  Roy.  de  Med.,  1776,  Paris,  vol.  i,  pt.  2, 
p.  417,  1779.  Read.  Traite  du  seigle  ergote.  Strasbourg,  1771.  Vauquelin. 
Analyse  du  seigle  ergote.  Annal  de  chim.  et  de  physique,  vol.  3,  p.  337,  1816. 
Pettenkofer.  Chemische  Versuche  mit  Mutterkorn.  Repertorium  f.  Pharm., 
vol.  3,  p.  65,  1817.    Early  historical  details  can  be  found  in  Wiggers'  article. 
^  Wiggers,  H.  A.  L.  Untersuch.  iiber  das  Mutterkorn.  Ann.  d.  Pharm., 
vol.  I,  p.  129,  1832. 
*  Mitscherlich,  E.  Ueber  die  Mycose,  den  Zucker  d.  Mutterkorns. 
Annal.  d.  Chemie,  vol.  106,  p.  15,  1858. 
'  Czapek,  F.    Biochemie  d.  Pflanzen.  vol.  i,  p.  231,  1905. 
'v.  Schroff,  C.  D.    Lehrb.  d.  Pharmakol.,  p.  617,  1873. 
"  Wright,  S.  Observations  on  the  oil  contained  in  ergot  of  rye.  Edin- 
burgh Med.  and  Surg.  Journ.,  vol.  54,  p.  51,  1840. 
^"Bonjean,  J.  Hist,  du  seigle  ergote.  Paris,  1842;  Traite  theorique 
et  .pratique  de  I'ergot  de  seigle.  Paris,  1845 ;  Maurel,  E.  Determination 
des  doses  d'ergotine  de  Bonjean  minima  mortelles.  Comp.  rend.  hebd.  Soc. 
de  Biol,  vol.  54,  p.  172,  1902. 
"  Kohler,  H.  Vergleich.  exper.  Untersuch.  iiber  d.  physiol.  Wirkungen 
d.  Ergotin;  Archiv.  f.  path.  Anat.,  vol.  60,  p.  384,  1874;  Rossbach,  M.  J. 
Einwirkung  verschied.  Mutterkornpraparate  auf  d.  Herz.  Verhandl.  d. 
phys.-med.  Gesellsch.  in  Wilrzburg,  n.  s.  vol.  6,  p.  19,  1874. 
^Hooker,  C.  On  the  properties  and  proximate  principles  of  the  ergot. 
Boston  Med.  &  Surg.  Journ.,  vol.  10,  p.  298,  1834. 
Parola,  L.  Nuove  richerche  sperimentale  sull'azione  *  *  dello  sprone 
dci  graminacei.  Ann.  Univer.  di  Med.,  vol.  109,  p.  241,  1844;  vol.  no,  p. 
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