Abstract
1. The toxicity of bulbocapnine and its safety as a pre-anesthetic medicant have been determined on white mice. Its lethal dose 50 was found to be 195 mgm. per kilogram, its minimum lethal dose 140 mgm. per kilogram, and its optimum dose for pre-anesthetic medication (suppression of muscular struggling) 15 mgm. per kilogram. Its margin of safety is therefore 9.4:1.
2. Efficient doses of bulbocapnine or morphine do not change the mortality curves of ethyl ether or vinyl ether anesthesia.
3. Addition of atropine to bulbocapnine or morphine decidedly decreases the mortality curves of ethyl ether or vinyl ether anesthesia.
4. Bulbocapnine does not markedly affect the Sherrington pseudo pain reflexes.
5. Up to very high doses bulbocapnine has little influence upon heart action and blood pressure. It stimulates respiration up to toxic doses. Respiratory failure occurs shortly before heart failure.
Footnotes
- Received October 9, 1935.
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