TABLE SHOWING THE ALKALOIDAL CONTENT OF VARIOUS PARTS OF THE BELLADONNA PLANT.
| Quantity of Alkaloids in the Fresh Substance, per cent. | Quantity of Alkaloids in the Dry Substance, per cent. | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (a.) By Weighing. | (b.) By Titration. | (a.) By Weighing. | (b.) By Titration. | |||||
| Leaves, | 0 | ·2022 | 0 | ·20072 | 0 | ·838 | 0 | ·828 |
| Stalk, | 0 | ·0422 | ... | 0 | ·146 | ... | ||
| Ripe fruit, | 0 | ·2128 | 0 | ·20258 | 0 | ·821 | 0 | ·805 |
| Seed, | 0 | ·26676 | ... | 0 | ·407 | ... | ||
| Unripe fruit, | 0 | ·1870 | 0 | ·1930 | 0 | ·955 | 0 | ·955 |
| Root, | 0 | ·0792 | ... | 0 | ·210 | ... | ||
Atropine appears to exist in the plant in combination with malic acid. According to a research by Ladenburg, hyoscyamine is associated with atropine, both in the Belladonna and Datura plants.[484]
[484] Ber. der deutsch. Chem. Ges., Bd. 13.
From a research by W. Schütte,[485] it appears that the younger roots of wild belladonna contain hyoscyamine only, whilst the older roots contain atropine as well as hyoscyamine, but only in small proportion; the same was observed to be the case in the older cultivated roots.
[485] Arch. Pharm., ccxxix., 492-531; Journ. Chem. Soc. (abstract), February 1892, 231.