PANCREATIN. Syn. Pancreatinum. 1. (Pereira.) Cut the fresh pancreas of the pig, freed from fat and all foreign matters, into small pieces, and digest with ether. If the ether be afterwards distilled off from the filtered liquid, the pancreatin will be left as an oily product.
2. (Griffith.) It is obtained from the pancreas of recently killed animals by treating the colourless, viscous juice with alcohol, and drying the precipitate in vacuo. Pancreatin is given for stimulating the digestion of fatty compounds.
The ordinary dose is 10 grains, taken in a glass of wine or water after a meal.
Dr Dobell’s “Crude Pancreatic Emulsion” is prepared as follows:—After freeing from fat and all foreign matters the pancreas of a freshly-killed pig, 21⁄2 lbs. of purified pancreas are bruised in a marble mortar, and to it are added 21⁄2 lbs. of lard; these are well beaten together, and then to the mixture 3 lbs. of water are added, very gradually, so as to ensure the perfect absorption of the latter.
The pancreatised fat is prepared by shaking up one part of the ‘crude emulsion’ with three parts of ether, allowing the mixture to stand, drawing off the ethereal solution, and carefully distilling off the ether. The pancreatised fat remains. Dr Dobell says that pancreatised fat, unlike the crude fat, has no tendency to putrefy. His ‘purified pancreatic emulsion’ is made by mixing very carefully together 5 parts of pancreatised fat, 71⁄2 parts of distilled water, and 21⁄2 parts of rectified spirit, and flavouring with oil of cloves.
3. Saccharated pancreatin. Mr Mattison[90] adopts the following process for the preparation of this substance:—The pancreas is dissected and macerated in water acidulated with hydrochloric acid for about forty-eight hours, then separated, and the acidulated solution of pancreas passed through a pulp filter until it is perfectly clear. To this clear
solution is then added a saturated solution of chloride of sodium, and allowed to stand until the pancreatin is separated. This is carefully skimmed off and placed upon a muslin filter, and allowed to drain, after which it should be washed with a less concentrated solution of sodium chloride, and then put under the press. When all the salt solution has been removed, and the mass is nearly dry, it is rubbed with a quantity of sugar of milk, and dried thoroughly without heat, after which it is diluted until ten grains emulsify two drachms of cod-liver oil.
[90] ‘American Journal of Pharmacy.’
PANIFICA′TION. The changes which occur in flour-dough under the influence of the fermentative process and heat, by which it is converted into bread.
PAPA′VERINE. Syn. Papaverina. An alkaloid discovered by Merck in opium. It crystallises in needles; is insoluble in water; is slightly soluble in cold alcohol and in ether; and forms crystallisable salts with the acids which possess little solubility. The hydrochlorate, one of the most characteristic of these compounds, crystallises in beautiful colourless prisms, which possess a high refractive power, and are only very slightly soluble in dilute hydrochloric acid. Flückiger states that papaverine is much less active than thebaine, that it is not soporific either with men or animals, that it does not arrest diarrhœa, and is but slightly analgesic.