Scammoniae Radix. Scammony Root. The dried root of Convolvulus Scammonia. Lin. Syst., Pentandria monogynia; growing in Syria, and exported chiefly from Smyrna.

Scammonium. Scammony, a gum resin, exuding from the cut root of the living plant, Convolvulus Scammonia.

Scammoniae Resina. Resin of Scammony. A resin obtained by means of rectified spirit, from dried Scammony Root, or from Scammony itself.

Description. The root is tap shaped, sometimes 3 inches in diameter at the top, brown without, white within, odorous, but with little taste.

Scammony occurs in masses, irregular in shape and size, of a blackish-green colour, covered with fine powder, porous, brittle, with a shining fracture. It has a musty odour, makes a lather when rubbed on the surface with water; the taste is nauseous and acrid after a few minutes. The resin obtained by means of rectified spirit from scammony root or scammony is in brownish, translucent pieces, brittle, resinous in fracture, and if prepared from the root, of a sweet fragrant odour.

Prop. & Comp. Scammony consists chiefly of a resin, sometimes in the form of a glucoside, sometimes in part as a resinous acid; the latter is soluble in ammonia; scammony resin is soluble in alcohol and ether, but precipitated from its solution on the addition of water. It has been stated to have the composition (C40 H33 O20).

Scammony should emit no bubbles of gas when treated with hydrochloric acid, nor, when digested in water of 170° Fah., should the fluid be tinged of a blue colour on the addition of iodide of potassium and dilute nitric acid, or free iodine. Of pure or virgin scammony, 80 or 90 per cent. should be soluble in ether. The above tests show the absence of chalk or starch, and also the amount of resin. The resin cannot form singly an emulsion with water, as it contains no gum. Its tincture should not render the fresh cut surface of a potatoe blue; this shows the absence of guaiacum, with which it is often adulterated.

Off. Prep. - Of the root. Resina. The resin is prepared by exhausting the root by maceration and percolation with rectified spirit. The tincture thus made is diluted with water, and the spirit distilled off. The residue is allowed to become cold, the supernatant fluid poured off, the resin washed two or three times with hot water, and dried on a porcelain plate.

Of Scammony or Resin of Scammony, Confectio Scammonii. Confection of Scammony. [Not officinal in U. S. P.] (Scammony or resin of scammony, in fine powder, three ounces; ginger, in fine powder, an ounce and a half; oil of caraway, one fluid drachm; oil of cloves, half a fluid drachm; syrup, three ounces; clarified honey, one ounce and a half.)

Mistura Scammonii. Scammony Mixture. [Not officinal in U. S. P.] (Made by triturating four grains of resin of scaramony with two fluid ounces of unskimmed milk, so as to form an emulsion.)

Pulvis Scammonii Compositus. Compound Scammony Powder. [Not officinal in U. S. P.] (Scammony, four ounces; jalap, three ounces; ginger, one ounce. Rub them separately into a very fine powder, and mix.)

Scammony, or its resin, also forms an important ingredient in Extractum colocynthidis compositum, and Pilula colocynthidis composita and Pilula colocynthidis composita et hyoscyami.

Therapeutics. A drastic purgative, generally causing much watery discharge, and often griping; useful to give activity to other purgatives, which appear to diminish its violence. It is employed in cerebral and dropsical effusions, torpidity of bowels, and as a vermifuge for children; it is contra-indicated in inflammatory affections of the digestive organs.

Dose. Of the powdered scammony (pure) 4 gr. to 10 gr.; of scammonin (the pure resin) 4 gr. to 10 gr.; of conf. scammonii, 15 gr. to 30 gr. or more; of mist. scammonii, 2 fl. oz.; of pulv. scammonii comp., 6 gr. to 15 gr. As an adjunct to other purgatives, it may be given in smaller quantities.

Adulteration. Scammony is most extensively adulterated with chalk, flour, other resins, and extracts. Sometimes the drug contains but a small per-centage only of real scammony. The frauds are detected by the tests given above.

Jalapa. Jalap. The tuber [root. U. S.] of Exogonium Purga, or true Jalap plant; Lin. Syst., Pentandria monogynia; growing in Mexico; it was named from the city Xalapa.

Jalapae Resina. Resin of Jalap. A resin obtained from Jalap by means of rectified spirits.

Description. Jalap tubers are ovoid, more or less pointed, varying from 1/2 inch to 3 or four inches in diameter, of a brown colour, and wrinkled externally; internally, yellowish, and in concentric layers. Structure dense and resinous in appearance; occasionally it is found worm-eaten. Sometimes the tubers are sliced.

The Resin of Jalap is in dark brown opaque fragments, translucent at the edges, breaking with a resinous fracture, and readily reduced to a pale brown powder.

Prop. & Comp. Jalap has a sweetish odour and taste, at the same time nauseous; it contains from 10 to 15 per cent. of resin, and about 20 per cent. of watery extractive matter, with starch, etc. Jalap resin is insoluble in oil of turpentine; soluble in alcohol, ether, or water; it becomes crimson with oil of vitriol. Jalap resin consists of at least two resinous bodies: one named Jalapine (Rhodeoretin), a glucoside (C62 H50 O32), nearly insoluble in ether. The second, sometimes termed Jalapic acid, or Pararhodeoretin (C40 H34 O18), is soluble in ether, and has the strong odour of the drug. The so-termed Jalapine of the shops is the resin of jalap extracted by spirit from the tuber, and afterwards precipitated by means of water.

Off. Prep. Extractum Jalapae. Extract of Jalap. (This is a mixed spirit and cold water extract, made by treating the powdered jalap first with rectified spirit, and afterwards with cold water, evaporating the tincture and watery solution separately to a soft state, and afterwards mixing them together and evaporating the whole to the consistence of an extract at a temperature not exceeding 140°.)

Pulvis Jalapae Compositus. Compound Powder of Jalap. (Jalap, in powder, five ounces; acid tartrate of potash, nine ounces; ginger, in powder, one ounce.) [Jalap, a troy ounce; bitartrate of potassa, two troy ounces; both in fine powder. U. S.]

Tinctura Jalapae. Tincture of Jalap. (Jalap, coarsely powdered, two ounces and a half; proof spirit, one pint. Prepared by maceration and percolation.) [Two pints of tincture are obtained by percolating six troy ounces of jalap with a mixture of two measures of alcohol and one of water. U. S.] Proof spirit takes up both the resin and watery extract.

Jalap is also an active ingredient in Pulvis scammonii compositus.

Therapeutics. Jalap is a brisk purgative, causing watery discharge; much allied to, but less irritant than, scammony; used as an ordinary purgative in costiveness and inflammatory affections, especially when combined with aromatics, which diminish the griping; also as a hydragogue in dropsies, and vermifuge when joined with the acid tartrate of potash or calomel.

Doses. Of the powder, 10 gr. to 30 gr.; of the resin, 2 gr. to 6 gr.; of ext. jalapae, 6 gr. to 20 gr.; of tinct. jalapae, 1/2 fl. drm. to 2 fl. drm.

Adulteration. Other roots, as of Ipomea orizabensis, etc, distinguished by the absence of the characters of true jalap.