Cocaine, cinnamoyl

Cocaine is the principal psychoactive alkaloid from the coca plant (figure 4.16). Other tropine alkaloids include c/s-cinnamoyl cocaine, trans-cinnamoyl cocaine, o-truxillin, and j truxillin (Gruenwald et al. 1998). 

Abused drugs (includes heroin, heroin impurities, cis- and trawi-cinnamoyl cocaine)... 

N,0-bi s(t ri methylsilyl)acetami de cis- and trais-cinnamoyl-cocaine, ecgonine, benzoylecgonine 0... 

Large-scale production of cocaine (both licit and illicit) essentially involves extraction of the total bases, which are then totally hydrolyzed so that all three ester alkaloids, cocaine, cinnamoyl cocaine, and the truxillines, are converted to ecgonine. The ecgonine is then methylated, followed by esterification with benzoic acid to cocaine. All of the ecgonine in the leaves is converted to the desired product in this way, which is a more efficient process than attempting to extract and separate out only the actual cocaine content from the plant. 

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