[467] Various papers in Journ. Chem. Soc., 1892-1894.
Three of the alkaloids have been fairly well worked out; the fourth homo-napelline has not yet been satisfactorily investigated.
The three alkaloids are aconitine, aconine and benzoyl-aconine; besides which pyraconitine and pyraconine can be obtained by suitable treatment from aconitine and aconine.
The formulæ of the alkaloids and their derivatives are as follows:—
| Aconitine (acetyl-benzoyl-aconine), | m.p., 188·60°, | C33H45NO12 |
| Benzoyl-aconine, | m.p., 268·0°, | C31H43NO11 |
| Pyraconitine (anhydro-benzoyl-aconine), | m.p., 188-190°, | C31H41NO10 |
| Aconine, | m.p., 132°, | C24H39NO10 |
| Pyraconine (anhydro-aconine), | C24H37NO9 |
§ 424. Aconitine, C33H45NO12.—This base has been shown by Dunstan to be acetyl-benzoyl-aconine; one molecule of the base breaking up, on complete hydrolysis, into one molecule of aconine, one of acetic acid, and one of benzoic acid—
| Acetic Acid. | Benzoic Acid. | Aconine. | ||||||
| C33H45NO12 | + | 2H2O | = | C2H4O2 | + | C7H6O2 | + | C24H39NO10. |
That is to say that 100 parts of aconitine, according to theory, should yield:—