GITOXIGENIN

Use

Recrystallisation of gitoxigenin from aqueous EtOH produces plates of the sesquihydrate which dehydrate on drying at 100o in vacuo. It also recrystallises from Me2CO/MeOH and from EtOAc (the crystals contain 1 mol of EtOAc) with [] D +24.8o (c 1, dioxane). It has UV with max at 310, 485 and 520nm in 96% H2SO4. On heating with ethanolic HCl it yields digitaligenin with loss of H2O. [Smith J Chem Soc 23 1931, Beilstein 8 IV 2456.]