Constituents of Magnolia grandiflora. III. Toxic Principle of the Wood

Abstract

The alcoholic extract of the wood of the medicinal plant M. grandiflora exhibited toxicity to mice when injected by the i.p. route. The toxic principle was a phenolic quaternary alkaloid and was obtained as a colorless crystalline solid. Analytical and spectral data showed that it was identical with menisperine (also called chakranine and isocorydinium cation) which has not been previously isolated from the genus Magnolia.