Aspidosperma Quebracho-bianco,

Schlechtendal.

The dried bark, with not more than 2 p. c. of wood, foreign matter, etc.

Habitat. S. America; Argentine Republic, Chile.

Syn. Aspidosp., Quebracho, Quebracho Bark, White Quebracho; Fr. Quebracho; Ger. Quebracho.

As-pi-do-sper'ma. L. fr. Gr.

a round shield, +

a seed - i. e., resemblance of seed - broadly winged.

Que-bra'cho-blan'co. Pg. contr. fr. quebrar, to break, + hacha, an ax, + bianco, white - i. e., light-colored wood, and stone cells of bark so hard as to break edges of axes, tools, etc.

Plant. - Evergreen tree, 25-30 M. (80-100°) high, wide spreading, drooping crown and branches; wood chocolate-brown, young yellowish; leaves lanceolate, small, short petiolate, coriaceous, rigid, glaucous; flowers campanulate, yellowish, 5's, panicles; fruit July, capsule, dehiscent, pericarp thick, woody. Bark, in irregular chips, longitudinal pieces, 5-14 Cm. (2-6') long, 10-35 Mm. (2/5-l 2/5') thick; outer corky layer 3-25 Mm. (1/8-l') thick, reddish-brown, deeply furrowed, frequently reticulate with longitudinal and shallow transverse fissures, crevices occasionally lined with mycelia of grayish mold; outer surface of bark (after removing cork) light reddish-brown, usually rough;

Fig. 321. - Aspidosperma (1/2 Nat.).

inner surface, sometimes with adhering wood, otherwise yellowish-brown, longitudinally finely striate and porous; fracture short-fibrous with projecting bast-fibres; fracture of entire bark reveals 2 well-defined strata of about equal thickness marked with dots, stone cells and striae; nearly inodorous; taste bitter, slightly aromatic. Powder, reddish-brown - bast-fibres single, long, surrounded by crystal fibres, thick groups of tabular stone cells, polygonal thick cork cells, spherical starch grains, .003-025 Mm. (1/8325-1/1000') broad. Solvent: diluted alcohol. Dose, gr. 15-30 (1-2 Gm.).

Commercial. - Tree resembles the weeping willow, being not only ornamental but valuable for its wood in building, carving, etc.; bark should be taken from old trees to insure well-developed corky layer; juice of the green fruit often used like rennet.

Constituents. - Aspidospermine, C22H30N2O2, aspidospermatine, C22H28N2O2, aspidosamine, C22H28N2O2 (amorphous), quebrachine,

C21H26N2O2, quebrachamine, hypoquebrachine, C21H20N2O2 (amorphous), quebrachit (sugar), tannin 3-4 p. c.

Alkaloids (6). - Obtained by treating extract (hot alcohol) with sodium hydroxide and chloroform, evaporating, taking up residue with diluted sulphuric acid, precipitating filtrate with sodium hydroxide; dissolve precipitate (mixed alkaloids) in boiling alcohol and upon cooling aspidospermine, quebrachine, and quebrachamine crystallize out (separated by crystallization from diluted hydrochloric acid), aspidospermine remaining in the (acid) mother-liquor; to the alcoholic mother-liquor add acetic acid, from which aspidosamine is precipitated by ammonia water, aspidospermatine and hypoquebrachine by sodium hydroxide (separated by boiling benzin in which hypoquebrachine is insoluble); all more or less soluble in alcohol, ether, chloroform, benzin (quebrachamine the least so). Aspidospermine is the leading alkaloid (usually a mixture in commerce), being prescribed as sulphate or chloride. Dose, gr. 1-2 (.06-.13 Gm.); quebrachine, the next most important alkaloid, also forms salts. Dose, gr. f-lj (.05-. 1 Gm.).

Preparations. - 1. Fluidextractum Aspidospermatis. Fluidextract of Aspidosperma. (Syn., Fldext. Aspidosp., Fluid Extract of Aspido-sperma, Fluidextract of Quebracho; Fr. Extrait fluide de Quebracho; Ger. Quebrachofluidextrakt.)

Manufacture: Similar to Fluidextractum Ergotse, page 60; 1st menstruum: alcohol 67 Ml. (Cc), water 22, glycerin 11; 2nd menstruum: 67 p. c. alcohol. Dose, lUxv-60 (1-4 Ml. (Cc.)).

Unoff. Preps.: Extract, dose, gr. 2-8 (.13 - .5 Gm.). Tincture, 20 p. c. (diluted alcohol), dose, 3j-4 (4-15 Ml. (Cc.)). Wine, 6 p. c, dose, 5j-6 (4-24 Ml. (Cc.)).

Properties. - Cardiac and respiratory stimulant, slows and deepens breathing, antispasmodic, antiperiodic; solutions protective to wounds.

Uses. - Cardiac and asthmatic dyspnoea, phthisis, asthma from bronchitis or chronic pneumonia, shortness of breath; facilitates absorption of oxygen by the blood; if use continued have headache, vertigo, salivation, intolerance, and death from asphyxia; enables the endurance of fatigue, climbing elevations, etc.; bark natively for tanning.

Allied Plants: