EPHEDRIN THERAPY IN ADDISON’S DISEASE

Our knowledge of Ma Huang, according to Chen, dates back into the dim history of China some 5,000 years. “Ma” signifies astringent, and “Huang” yellow. The first mention of it appeared in the Chinese dispensatory in 1596 A.D. Nagai, in 1887, isolated an alkaloid from it which he named ephedrin. The recent work of Chen and Schmidt has focused attention on the pharmacologic actions of ephedrin and its possible clinical value. The chemical structure of ephedrin, according to Chen, is probably C6H5OH-CH. CH3-NHCH2. Kendall, of the Mayo Clinic, has investigated the fundamental behavior of ephedrin and epinephrin, particularly in relation to their oxidizing properties. In this connection we quote him as follows: “The structural formula of epinephin has been established by its synthesis. The chemical groups present and their precise arrangement are known beyond question. The chemical structure of ephedrin is also known, and inspection of the structural formulas of these two substances show them to be closely rel...