The Bocconia genera of the alkaloid-rich Papaveraceae family contains nine species most of which are native to RlIexico. They were used by the Indians as dyes and, of inore interest, in a variety of medicinal preparations (1, 2).' Armendariz (3) and later Manske (4, 5 ) in chemical studies on B. arborea reported the presence of chelerythrine (3-6), sanguinarine (3, 6), protopine (3,4, 6), and allocryptopine (4) as well as other unidentified substances. Studies of B. cordata Wild (formerly Macleya cordata) (7, 8, 9), B. frutescens L. (lo), and B. parcei Hecht (11) have also been reported. No cheinical studies of B. lat*isepala Wats., a common medicinal plant of northeastern Mexico, have been made so it was selected for study. Pulverized samples of the roots, bark and stems, leaves, and seeds mere each extracted with petroleum ether and then ethanol. The course of the extraction and later fractionations were followed by thin-layer chromatography (t.1.c.) (12).The petroleum ether extracts of the bark and stems and the leaves afforded a precipitate shown to be cerylic alcohol. The filtrate from the extract of the bark and stems on alumina chromatography afforded more cerylic alcohol, chelerythrine (yellow, m.p. 205" decoinp.), and sanguinarine (orange, m.p. 255-258' decomp.) identified by their infrared spectra, pseudocyanides, and t.1.c. Xi values. A white compound, m.p. 360-363O, was not further investigated since it gave negative results in the usual alkaloid tests. In addition to these two alltaloids, the alcoholic extract of the leaves and the roots afforded oxysanguinarine, protopine, and a-allocryptopine.The petroleum ether extract of the seeds afforded a reddish, fluorescent oil (33.5%) shown upon saponification to contain principally stearic and palmitic acids and smaller a~nounts of oleic and lauric acids. From the non-saponifiable fraction was isolated a small amount of chelerythrine and sanguinarine. Thin-layer chromatography indicated that a-allocryptopine and oxysanguinarine were also present.
E X P E R I M E N T A LMelting points (uncorr.)
