Cephaclis

Ipecacuanha,

(Brotero) A. Richard, acuminata,

Karsten.

The dried root, with not more than 5 p. c. of stems, foreign matter, containing 1.75 p. c. of ether-soluble alkaloids.

Habitat. Brazil to Bolivia, Columbia, damp forests; cultivated in India. Syn. Hippo, Poaya; Br. Ipecacuanhae Radix; Fr. Ipecacuanha annele (officinale), Racine bresilienne; Ger. Brechwurzel. Ruhrwurzel. Ceph-a-e'lis. L. fr. Gr.

a head, +

to collect - i. e., flowers collected into a capitulum.

Ip-e-cac-u-an'ha. L. fr. Braz. Indian name ipecaaguen, which means "smaller roadside sickmaking plant."

A-cu-mi-na'ta. L. acuminatus, pointed, acute - i. e., apex of the leaves.

Ip'e-cac. An abbreviation of ipecacuanha.

Plants. - Shrubby perennials; stem .3-5 M. (12-18') high, with often .3 M. (12') additional underground, decumbent or erect, woody, knotted with leaf-scars, smooth and gray at the base, quadrangular, pubescent and green above, simple or branched; leaves few, 6-8, somewhat crowded at the top, 7.5-10 Cm. (3-4') long, 2.5-5 Cm. (1-2') broad, stipulate, opposite, petiolate, obovate, entire, wavy margins, dark green, smooth above, paler, pubescent, prominent veined beneath; flowers Jan.-Feb., small white dense heads, 8-20 together, funnel-shape, hairy; fruit May, in clusters of dark purple berries 12 Mm. (1/2') long, each with 2 small, plano-convex, stony seeds. Root (C. Ipecacuanha): Rio, in cylindrical, curved, sharply flexuous, pieces, occasionally branched, 3-15 Cm. (l 1/5-6') long, 2.5-4 Mm. (1/10-1/6') thick, grayish-black, closely annulated with thickened, incomplete rings, usually transverse fissures with vertical sides; bark thick, easily separable from yellowish-white wood; fracture of bark short, of wood tough; stems cylindrical, 5-10 Cm. (2-4') long, 1-2 Mm. (1/25-1/12) thick, finely longitudinally wrinkled, few elliptical scars; (C. acuminata): Carthagena, cylindrical, slenderly fusiform, tortuous, 3-12 Cm. (1 1/5-5') long, 4-6.5 Mm. (1/6-1/4') thick, grayish-black, fewer annulations and transverse fissures, circular root-scars; hark 2 Mm. (1/12') thick, smooth, horny, easily separable from light brown wood; stems one-third thicker, somewhat zigzag, bark thin; odor slight, distinctive, dust sternutatory; taste bitter, nauseous, acrid. Powder, light brown; microscopically - numerous starch grains, .003-.017 Mm. (1/8325-1/1475') broad, few calcium oxalate raphides, tracheids, few stone cells (stem bark). Should be kept cool, dry. Solvents: alcohol; water (injured by boiling). Dose, emetic, gr. 20 (1.3 Gm.), or gr. 5-10 (.3-6Gm.), repeated in 10-minute intervals, each followed by hot chamomile tea; nauseant, diaphoretic, expectorant, gr. 1-2 (.06-. 13 Gm.).

Adulterations. - Root: Roots of allied species - striated, undulated (most important), Cephaelis tomento'sa, excessive portion of non-annulated woody stem; roots of Trios'teum perfolia'tum and Heter-op'teris pauciflo'ra, both resembling somewhat the official, the latter containing an inulin-like body instead of starch; Johore and Matto Grosso ipecac - larger, but annulations not so deep as the official. Powder: Starches, flour, almond-meal, etc., all being recognized easily under the microscope - the first two by the shape of granules, the last by scurvy testa, oil-cells, and yielding hydrocyanic acid when infused with water; ground olive stones 3 - 40 p. c.