Oleum Theobromatis. Oil of Theobroma, official.

Theobroma Cacao,

Linne.

A concrete, fixed oil obtained from the roasted seeds.

Habitat. S. America (Brazil), C. America, Mexico, W. Indies; cultivated in the tropics, largely in some of the W. Indies.

Syn. Semen (Fahae) Cacao; 01. Theobrom., Butter of Cacao, Cacao Butter, Oleum Theobromae; Fr. Cacao, Feves du Mexique, Beurre de Cacao; Oleum Cacao; Ger. Kakaobohnen; Kakaobutter.

Theo-o-bro'ma. L fr. Gr.

food, food of the gods - i. e., its delicious qualities.

Ca-ca'o. L. Sp. from Mexican kakahuati - i. e., its native name.

Plant. - Handsome tree 9-12 M. (30-40°) high, round branches, bark gray, smooth; leaves 20-22.5 Cm. (8-9') long, 6 Cm. (2 2/5') wide, lanceolate, acute, round base, entire, veins prominent beneath, petiole 2.5 Cm. (1') long, thickened at both ends; young leaves pink; flowers pale pink, calyx and corolla 2.5 Cm. (1') broad, alike in color; fruit large, 15-17.5 Cm. (6-7') long, broadly fusiform, with 10 shallow furrows and blunt ridges, tuberculated, pendulous, single or 2-3 together, at first yellow, then red, purple, pericarp thick, tough, 5-celled; seeds many, closely packed in tiers, size of almonds, angular from pressure, immersed in copious, sweet buttery pulp, seed-coats 2, brownish.

Constituents. - Seeds: Fixed oil 50 p. c, starch 16 p. c, theobromine 1.5-4.5 p. c, caffeine, proteids 18 p. c, sugar .6 p. c, cacao-red 5-6 p. c, volatile odorous principle, ash 3.6-4.6 p. c.

Oleum Theobromatis. Oil of Theobroma. - This concrete, fixed oil is a yellowish-white solid (lighter-colored with age), faint, agreeable odor, bland, chocolate-like taste, usually brittle below 25° C. (77° F.), soluble in ether, chloroform, benzene, boiling dehydrated alcohol, slightly in alcohol, sp. gr. 0.973, melts at 30-35° C. (86-95° F.); contains stearin 40 p. c, palmitin, laurin, small amounts of glycerides of acetic, butyric, formic, linolic, and arachidic acids. Test: 1. Dissolve 1 Gm. in ether 3 Ml. (Cc.) in test-tube at 17° C. (63° F.), frequently immerse test-tube into ice-cold water - liquid not turbid nor with deposit of white flakes in less than 3 minutes, and after congealing should clarify at 15° C; 59° F. (abs. of wax, stearin, tallow). Dose, 3ss-l (2-4 Gm.). Adulterations. - Wax, stearin, tallow, etc.

Fig. 261. - Theobroma Cacao.

Commercial. - The seeds when taken from the fruit and dried retain astringency and bitterness, properties which may be overcome by roasting, or sweating and fermenting in heaps for 1 week, or burying in a box for 3 days, then drying. The oil is extracted afterward by: 1, Expression; 2, Decoction; 3, Solution (benzin, carbon disulphide, chloroform, ether), the first process being considered best, and consisting in the removal of the shells, heating the kernels at 70° C. (158° F.), subjecting them to hydraulic pressure between hot iron plates or rollers, and running the oil into rectangular molds, where it soon congeals. The residual (dryish, oleaginous pulp) expressed cake or oil cake, still containing small amount of oil, is utilized as chocolate.

Preparations. - (Unoff.) Emulsion. Ointments. Suppositories.

Properties. - Nutrient, demulcent, emollient.

Uses. - Seldom internally, only as suppositories, when it acts as an excipient or carrier for other medicine. Externally in cosmetic ointments, pill coating, abraded or inflamed surfaces.

Derivative Products:

1. Theobrominae Sodio-Salicylas. Theobromine Sodio-Salicylate, C7H7N4O2Na + C6H4(OH)COONa, official - (Syn., Theobrom. Sodio-Sal., Diuretin; Fr. Theobromine et Salicylate de Soude; Ger. Theo-brominnatriumsalicylate.) Obtained by mixing aqueous solutions of equal molecules of sodium theobromine and sodium salicylate, evaporating to dryness. It is a white, odorless powder, sweetish, saline, somewhat alkaline taste, gradually absorbs carbon dioxide liberating theobromine, becoming partially insoluble in water; soluble in water (1), slightly in alcohol; contains, when dried to constant weight, theobromine 46.5 p. c, salicylic acid 38 p. c. Tests: 1. Ignited - residue produces intensely yellow flame and effervesces with acids. 2. Aqueous solution (1 in 20) colorless, clear, opalescent, strongly alkaline; aqueous solution (1 in 100), slightly acidulated with acetic acid, with ferric chloride T. S. - violet. Impurities: Caffeine, sodium carbonate, organic substances. Should be kept in well-closed containers. Dose, gr. 5-15 (.3-1 Gm.), 5-6 times daily, in dilute solution, capsule, wafer, followed by water.

Properties and Uses. - Diuretic, nervous stimulant; cardiac dropsy, nephritis (chronic, acute), dyspnoea, coughs; very slight action on heart and circulation; may produce headache, irregular pulse, vomiting, diarrhoea, gastric irritation (avoided by small doses and weak solutions); owing to greater solubility far superior to theobromine. Incompatibles: Acids, fruit syrups (decomposing and precipitating theobromine), bicarbonates, borates, phosphates, ferric salts, hydrated chloral, wines, etc.