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This information has been left in for historical purposes but should not be acted upon.
Nicotine
in chemistry, C10H14N2; an acrid poisonous alkaloid found in tobacco leaves to the extent of from 1 to 5 per cent. It may be prepared by passing a current of steam through a mixture of lime and powdered tobacco, neutralizing the liquid which comes over with sulphuric acid, adding ammonia to liberate the The ethereal solution yields nicotine, and dissolving the latter in ether. almost pure nicotine. Soluble in water, alcohol, ether, and the fat oils, its charalcohol, ether, and the fat oils, its char- acteristic reaction is the formation of a kermes-brown precipitate with tincture of iodine. Nicotine forms numerous salts.