Datura

DURMAN, Datura stramonium L., family Solanaceae, an annual herbaceous plant growing wild in almost all parts of the world on humus-rich soil, and also cultivated for medical purposes. In the leaves and seeds of D., as in many other representatives of the Solanaceae family, the alkaloid hyoscyamine is contained, as well as scopolamine (formerly called hyoscinom). Leaves (F VII), collected during the flowering of the plant, contain 0.2–0.5% of hyoscyamine, which, upon extraction, passes almost entirely into atropine. The mixture of hyoscyamine with atropine obtained from the leaves was formerly erroneously accepted as an independent alkaloid, named daturin. In the seeds (the latter are not official) of ripe fruits, up to 0.4% of alkaloids, mainly hyoscyamine, and less scopolamine are contained. In addition, the seeds contain 12–25% of fatty oil. The leaves and galenical preparations prepared from them have the same application in medicine as the preparations of belladonna and henbane. Leaves of D. are used more frequently for the preparation of anti-asthmatic cigarettes. Their use in these purposes is partly facilitated by the large amount of potassium nitrate contained in them. They also enter the composition of popular secret remedies: Abyssinian powder, cigarettes d'Espie, etc. In cases of poisoning with D. fruits that occur sometimes, one should consider that the locally irritating substances contained in them cause gastrointestinal disorders (vomiting, diarrhea, etc.), which can obscure the absorptive action (coinciding with the action of atropine). Preparations and doses: Folia stram.-0.2 (pro die 0.6); Tinctura stram.-0.25 (0.5); Extractum Dat. stram. 0.06 (0.3).