Taito O. Soine

Conversion of tetrahydroberberine into pavinane-type alkaloids

OO-Dimethylmunitagine (III) has been synthesised from tetrahydroberberine (V) through a series of reactions which culminate in the Stevens rearrangement.

The isolation of β-allocryptopine from Argemone squarrosa subsp. squarrosa.

An examination of the alkaloidal content of Argemone squarrosa subsp. squarrosa has yielded approximately 1 per cent of β -allocryptopine as the major alkaloid, if not the only one. The alkaloid has been identified by conventional derivatives as well as by comparison of its infrared spectrum with that of its physical isomeride, α -allo-cryptopine. Pharmacological testing has indicated that the alkaloid is relatively inactive except for its known ability to suppress auricular fibrillation.An examination of the alkaloidal content of Argemone squarrosa subsp. squarrosa has yielded approximately 1 per cent of β-allocryptopine as the major alkaloid, if not the only one. The alkaloid has been identified by conventional derivatives as well as by comparison of its infrared spectrum with that of its physical isomeride, α-allocryptopine. Pharmacological testing has indicated that the alkaloid is relatively inactive except for its known ability to suppress auricular fibrillation.