Extraction and Identification of Clavine and Lysergic Acid Alkaloids from Morning Glories1
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EXTRACTION AND IDENTIFICATION OF CLAVINE AND LYSERGIC ACID ALKALOIDS FROM MORNING GLORIES1 WELDON L. WITTERS Department of Zoology and Microbiology, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio ^5701 WITTERS, WELDON L. Extraction and alkaloids. These substances are some- identification of clavine and lysergic acid times called ergoline compounds (Der alkaloids from morning glories. Ohio J. Marderosian, 1967). In 1938, Albert Sci. 75(4): 198, 1975. Hofmann of the Sandoz Company, syn- Seeds from three varieties of Ipomoea thesized LSD from ergoline compounds, grown in Ohio were examined for clavine and in 1960 he discovered lysergic acid and lysergic acid alkaloids. Three sys- and clavine alkaloids in morning glory tems of extraction of ergoline alkaloids seeds of Ipomoea violacea Sp. (Hofmann, were compared with the ammonium 1968). hydroxide-methanol-chloroform method A number of investigators, since Hof- proving superior to the others. Four mann, have identified ergoline compounds chromatographic systems were compared in Ipomoea Sp. (Genest, 1966; Niwaguchi for ability to resolve and identify ergoline and Inoue, 1969; Taber et al., 1963). alkaloids. Of the four systems, a thin- The literature records a wide range of layer system with ethyl acetate-ethanol- qualitative and quantitative data on dimethyl-formamide gave the best resolu- ergoline compounds in morning glories. tion of ergoline alkaloids. Ipomoea vio- These data are confused by the variety of lacea L. var. Pearly Gates had signifi- extraction and identification techniques cantly more total alkaloids and more and differences in preparation techniques. individual ergoline alkaloids. In trial runs in our laboratory, it was discovered that quantitative results varied from seed batch to seed batch, For many years, scientists have known and that time and technique of extrac- of a series of hallucinogenic alkaloids in tion and chromatographic separation was such unrelated plants as cactus, mush- very important. rooms and morning glories. There is evidence that some groups of Indians METHODS Seeds were collected from three types of have used various of these plants for morning glory Ipomoea violacea L. var. heav- ceremonial purposes for centuries (Mac- enly Blue, Ipomoea violacea L. var. Pearly Dougall, 1960; Schultes, 1941), although Gates, and Ipomoea violacea L. var. Blue Star there is no record of use by Indians of (based on the classification of Der Marderosian 1967) grown from seeds purchased from the Ohio. MacDougall believes that tribes George W. Park Seed Co., Greenwood, North of Indians used the morning glory in Carolina. religious ceremonies and as a type of Three methods of extraction of ergoline alka- narcotic or analgesic. In the early loids were compared using 5-g portions of each 1570's, the King of Spain's personal of the three varieties of seed, ground with clean quartz sand in a mortar. Total ergoline alka- physician, Hernandez, wrote that the loid content was estimated by colorimetric pro- Aztecs used morning glory seeds, called cedures developed by Genest (1966) and Vining Ololiuqi, to commune with their gods and Taber (1959). The methods for extraction (Hofmann, 1968). were: 1. Ground seeds were washed with 50 ml of In the 1930's, the Sandoz Pharmaceu- a 1:1 mixture of 10% sodium bicarbonate and tical Company of Basle, Switzerland, ex- ethyl acetate. The solvent fraction was re- tracted a number of pharmacologically moved from the seeds and dried. The residue was treated with 50 ml of a 1:1 mixture of active substances from the ergot fungus, dicthyl ether and 1% tartaric acid. The alka- Claviceps purpurea. These substances loids were present in the lower layer (Taber ct were lysergic acid derivatives and clavine al.. 1963). 2. The ground seeds were covered with a Manuscript received 3/11/71, and in revised 10% ammonium hydroxide in dicthyl ether mix- form 0/23/75 (#71-15). ture, the solvent was dried and the residue was No. 4 ERGOLINE ALKALOIDS IN MORNING GLORIES 199 dissolved in a 1:1 mixture of diethyl ether and of ethyl acetate-cthanol-dimethylformamide 1% tartaric acid (Taber et al., 1963). (Agurell and Ramstad, 1962). 3. The ground seeds were treated with 50 ml 4. Thin layer plates were covered with a of a 10:90:900 mixture of ammonium hydroxide, 0.25 mm layer of silica gel G and activated. methanol and chloroform. The slurry was The alkaloid mixture was spotted on the plates shaken for 5 minutes, and 50 ml of chloroform and the plates were developed in a 5:5:1 mix- and 2 ml of water was added. The slurry was ture of acetone-ethyl acetate-dimethyl- for- filtered through glass wool and the solvent col- mamide (Niwaguchi and Inoue, 1969). lected (Alexander and Banes, 1901). Ergoline standards (Aldrich Chemical Co.) Solutions from each of the three above pro- were added to each chromatogram to compare cedures were treated with chloroform after with the unknown spots. The location of the neutralizing each with excess sodium bicarbon- ergoline alkaloids was determined by noting the ate. The chloroform was removed under fluorescent zones that appeared under ultra- vacuum and the residue redissolved in 0.5 ml violet light and also by spraying the completed ethanol. chromatogram with van Urk's reagent (1 g 4- Isolation and identification of the extracted dimethylaminobenzaldehyde dissolved in a mix- ergoline alkaloids was done by four chromato- ture of 50 ml 25% hydrochloric acid and 50 ml graphic methods. Exactly 50 microliters of ethanol) (Waldi, 1962). each solution was placed as a single spot on paper strips or thin-layer plates. Procedures RESULTS AND DISCUSSION for identification and separation of the ergoline alkaloids were: Of the three varieties of Ipomoea in- 1. Whatman No. 3 MM paper was impreg- nated with a solution of 4% benzoic acid in a vestigated, Ipomoea violacea L. var. 3:1 mixture of methanol and formamide. After Pearly Gates had a significantly higher the paper was dry an aliquot of ergoline-con- yield of total alkaloids in all three sys- taining solvent was spotted on the paper and tems of extraction (table 1). The Pearly the chromatogram developed in a mixture of benzene-pyridine (6:1) for 3.5 hours (Agurell Gates variety yielded a mean value of andRamstad, 1962). 0.060% of fresh weight as compared to 2. Whatman No. 3 MM paper was impreg- mean values of 0.034 and 0.027% for nated with the solution of 4% benzoic acid in the Heavenly Blue and Blue Star varie- 3:1 methanol-formamide. The alkaloid-con- ties, respectively. The extraction system taining solution was spotted on the paper and developed in a mixture of chloroform-pyridine using ammonium hydroxide, methanol (6:1) for two hours (Agurell and Ramstad, and chloroform developed by Alexander 1962). and Banes (1961) gave the highest mean 3. Thin layer plates were covered with a yield of ergoline alkaloids by fresh weight 0.25 mm layer of silica gel G and activated. The alkaloid solution was spotted at the base- from the three varieties of morning glory, line and they were developed in a 13:1:1 mixture compared to the other two systems. The TABLE 1 Alkaloid content of Ipomoea seeds.1 % Fresh weight in 3 extraction systems2 Type of Ipomoea 1 2 3 Mean Heavenly Blue 0 .028 0 .036 0 .038 0.034 Pearly Gates 0 .040 0 .068 0 .072 0.060 Blue Star 0 .022 0 .026 0 .032 0.027 Mean: 0.030 0.043 0.047 xThe values are expressed as ergometrine equivalents using the van Urk reagent (Vining and Taber, 1959). Extraction method: 1. 10% sodium bicarbonate in ethyl acetate; the extract was dried and the residue taken up in a mixture of ether and 1% tartaric acid. Extraction method: 2. 10% ammonium hydroxide and ether. Extract was dried and residue taken up in ether and 1% tartaric acid. Extraction method: 3. 50 ml of a mixture of 10:90:900 ammonium hydroxide, methanol and chloroform to which a 50 ml aliquot of chloroform and 2 ml of water was added. 200 WELDON L. WITTERS Vol. 75 mean per cent fresh weight of alkaloids ethanol-dimethylformamide. In Pearly extracted by the ammonium hydroxide, Gates, ergometrine and agroclavine were methanol and chloroform mixture was not detectable in the paper chromato- 0.045, while the ammonium hydroxide in graphic system using benzene-pyridine diethyl ether solution yielded 0.43, and as the developing mixture, and penni- the sodium bicarbonate, ethyl acetate clavine was not found using the thin-layer solution yielded only 0.030 per cent of system using a 5:5:1 mixture of acetone, fresh weight for the ergoline alkaloids. ethyl acetate and dimethylformamide. The Pearly Gates variety had the most In the Heavenly Blue seeds, no chano- ergoline alkaloids in all three extraction clavine or pennicalvine was detected systems (table 1) with a per cent fresh using any of the four chromatographic weight of ergoline compounds of 0.060 methods. No agroclavine, penniclavine, compared to 0.034 and 0.027 for the or chanoclavine were found in Blue Star Heavenly Blue and the Blue Star varie- seeds. ties, respectively. All six of the alkaloids The thin-layer systems using the mix- listed in Table 2 were found in Pearly ture of ethyl acetate, ethanol and di- Gates with the paper chromatographic methylformamide gave the greatest clar- system in which the paper was impreg- ity of individual spots and had the further nated with 4% benzoic acid in a 3:1 mix- advantage of taking less than two hours, ture of methanol-formamide and develo- whereas the paper chromatographic sys- oped in chloroform-pyridine, and with the tems took nearly three hours. thin-layer chromatographic system that Ipomoea violacea L.