Abstract
In continuation of the work carried on in this laboratory on the occurrence of p-hydroxyphenyl-ethylamine in a southern mistletoe (Phoradendron flavescens Nutt.), it was decided to examine all the species of mistletoe available, and isolate and identify the amines present.
The examination of a commercial fluid extract of European mistletoe (Viscum album) 1 showed that a considerable quantity of a mixture of amines was present. From 946 c.c. of the fluid extract there was isolated .660 gram of mixed oxalates of the amines. This yielded .240 gm. of pure p-hydroxyphenyl-ethylamine oxalate, m.p. 203°-204° (corr.). The picrate melted at 206° as did that of the picrate of synthetic p-hydroxyphenyl-ethylamine. The di-benzoyl derivatives of both the natural and synthetic amine melted at 174° when melted either separately or mixed, provided they were crystallized from hot propyl alcohol (Kahlbaum's), but at 171.5° when crystallized from 50 per cent. propyl or ethyl alcohol. All melting points were made with Anschütz short scale thermometers (tested and found accurate to .2°) in a Roth melting point apparatus, and therefore need no correction and would naturally be somewhat higher than uncorrected readings, but this does not account for the great difference between these melting points and those reported by others. When more material becomes available the reasons for these differences will be carefully investigated.
A platinichloride, isolated from the hydrochlorides of the steam volatile portion of the amines, was heated to 270° when it decomposed without melting. The amount obtained was too small to examine further.
For extracting the amines from a sodium carbonate solution free from alcohol, a mixture of I part amyl alcohol with 3 parts ether was used, as it is a better solvent than ether alone and does not emulsify like amyl alcohol alone. The amines were recovered by extracting the ether-amyl alcohol mixture with dilute H2SO4.
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