The constituents of the rhizome of Iris versicolor / by Frederick B. Power and Arthur H. Salway.

  • Power, Frederick B. (Frederick Belding), 1853-1927
Date:
[1911?]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: The constituents of the rhizome of Iris versicolor / by Frederick B. Power and Arthur H. Salway. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    water. The latter compound sintered at 260° and melted completely at 275 °. A known specimen of Aophthalic acid, when similarly treated, also yielded an acid amide sintering at 260° and melting at 275°, and when the two specimens of amide were mixed the melt¬ ing point remained unaltered. The above-described substance was thus identified as wophthalic acid, the occurrence of which in nature does not appear to have been hitherto observed. The amount of this acid obtained from 2 kilo¬ grammes of the alcoholic extract of “ Blue Flag Root ” was about 0.15 gramme, thus corresponding to 0.0019 per cent, of the weight of the drug. The phenolic methyl esters, which had been separated from the non-phenolic portion by means of sodium hydroxide, as above described, were hydrolyzed by heating for a short time with an aqueous solution of this alkali. The liquid was then acidified, when a resinous precipitate was deposited, which was extracted with ether. The ethereal liquid was washed and dried, and, on removing the solvent, yielded about 1 gramme of a brown oil. Since the latter did not show any indication of crystallizing, it was agitated with light petroleum, the petroleum extract decanted from insoluble oil, and the solvent allowed to evaporate. A trace of a crystalline solid was thus obtained, which gave a violet coloration with ferric chloride as well as the characteristic odor of oil of wintergreen when heated with methyl alcohol and a few drops of concentrated sulphuric acid. The presence of salicylic acid was thus indicated, but the amount was too small to admit of complete identification. That portion of the oil which was insoluble in light petroleum was again converted into its methyl ester, and the latter benzoylated by the Schotten-Bau- mann method. The product was oily, but gradually deposited a few colorless crystals. These were separated from adhering oil by spreading them on a porous tile, and then recrystallized from alco¬ hol, when they separated in stellar aggregates of fine needles, melting at no°. The amount of this substance was too small for further examination. The sodium carbonate (b) and the sodium hydroxide (c) ex¬ tracts of the original ethereal liquid, when acidified, yielded only small quantities of gummy substances from which no definite com¬ pound could be isolated. On finally evaporating the ethereal liquids,