D. I. Macht
Aug 1, 1923
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Influential Citations
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Journal
Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
Abstract
A study of atropin, scopolamin, homatropin and related compounds on the behavior of albino rats in the circular maze yielded the following results: 1. Small doses of atropin produced stimulation, while large doses produced depression of the cerebral functions. 2. Small doses of scopolamin produced stimulation, and larger doses produced depression, but the relative dosage of scopolamin was much smaller than that of atropin so that in most experiments a depressant effect was predominating. 3. The tropin molecule in the form of tropin hydrochloride is in small doses inactive, but larger doses of this compound produce a depressant effect. 4. Tropic acid in the form of a sodium salt produces no effect even in relatively large doses. 5. It would seem that the depressant or narcotic effects of atropin and scopolamin are due to the tropin and scopolin components respectively, and that these components are very greatly potentiated in their pharmacological activity by the chemical combination with tropic acid. 6. The laevo-gyrous varieties of both hyoscyamin and hyoscin (scopolamin) were found to be more active than the racemic varieties as studied on the behavior of rats in the circular maze. 7. Homatropin was found to be less depressant than atropin and the lesser toxicity of the same is probably due to the presence of the mandelic acid radical. 8. While the killing dose of atropin for rats is very high, the present investigation shows that the same animal is very sensitive to even minute doses of the alkaloid as regards the effect on the brain.