Ephedra vulgaris

Ephedrine is an alkaloid obtained from Ephedra vulgaris plant. It act indirectly and directly on a and P receptors. It increases blood pressure both by peripheral vasoconstriction and by increasing the cardiac output. Ephedrine also relaxes the bronchial smooth muscles. 

Ephedra tnfurca Ephedra tweediana Ephedra viridis Ephedra vulgaris Sida cordifolia Roemeria refracta... 

Enterolobium cyclocarpum (Jacq.) Gr-418 Ephedra vulgaris Rich. 332 Epichloe typhina Fries-ij8 Epiphylium sp—108,216,222,269 ... 

Norephedrine C9H13NO 151.21 51 -15° (C2H5OH) Ephedra vulgaris, Catha edulis 492-41-1... 

Pseudoephedrine C.oH.jNO 165.24 117-118 +52° (C2H5OH) Ephedra vulgaris, Roemeria refracta, Sida cordifolia 90-82-4... 

The world war made all these sources of supply difficult of access and stimulated interest in the possibilities of local production. Examination of a number of American species of ephedra had already shown them to be devoid of alkaloids, except for the S. American species E. andina, in which Chavezt found ephedrine, and in the United States attention has been given to the experimental cultivation of imported species, notably E. sinica and E. gerardiana a Moroccan type, E. alenda, was found to contain only ). In Australia experimental cultivation of the Indian species E. gerardiana, E. intermedia and E. nebrodensis has been tried and preliminary yields of 1-35, 1-OS and 0-98 per cent, of total alkaloids respectively have been recorded. In Russia, E. equisetina and E. intermedia are available and are considered to be worth exploitation. In Italy various local species have been found to contain mainly i -ephedrine and that in small amount, but better results are recorded for two species already referred to and which are available in Sardinia, viz. E. vulgaris Rich and E. nebrodensis. ... 

In Italy several investigations have been carried out by La Floresta (137, 138), Carboni (139, 140, 141) Mulas and Safis (142), Alberti (143) and Simon (144), on local species of Sardinia and Sicily, to find suitable sources of ephedra alkaloids. It was found that E. nehrodensis contained high amounts of ephedrine and -ephedrine E. distachya (E. vulgaris Rich.) contained only /-ephedrine, while E. fragilis Desf., E. altissima Desf., and E. procera C. A. Mey E. nehrodensis Tineo ) were of low alkaloidal content. 

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