Brooklyn College of Pharmacy - Pharmakon Yearbook (Brooklyn, NY)

Page 65 text:

N5 f- ------ -----..,,,f..- . N' '-'- -W - , . e x's'C'mX.....'e'Z1..f.. N' ' i LIL ' ' ,.f'1'l:5.+Uetr Lfx' X Qtstilirvj amd- C 3: 'KH 1 n r P'i -.lu-sc lectures are followed by a laboratory period Where the topics of the lecture are practically demonstrated by actual handling i gieeunens and suitable experiitnental work. Studies of plant and inorganic drugs. by fresh and dried botanical specimens from the ol' s l olege llerbarium and by charts and preparations are provided. 1. ine hour each week is set aside as a period of special instruction 111111 flllll. where the lecture and laboratory Work are gone over and con lll'llll'tl. ' .-Xssoeiated with Professoi' liohness, We find Dr. William H. XX eygandt who takes charge of the laboratory Work and Who supple- nientslthe lectures during the quiz hour. This gentleman, Whose work is not confined to this department alone, by means of his extensive knowledge of his subject and his pleasing personality, goes far in aiding Professor Lohness make the department one of the 'most popular among the student body. s g In the laboratory period both Professor Lohness and Dr. Wey- gandt are capably assisted by Mr. Benjamin L. Milana Who bids fair to follow along the lines so capably laid out by his superiors. c In the first half of the Junior course, the class is thoroughly drilled in Botany. with particular reference to its use by the practical pharmacist. and as a preparation for the subsequent study of the drugs derived from the plant kingdom. Since the official drugs are chiefly derived from seed bearing plants, attention is centered upon them. Their life histories are traced out from a studyof the seed and its development into the adult plant. The existing kinds of seed bearing plants according to size. structure, and essential peculiarities are pointed out. This is followed by a systematic study of the .plant body and its organs, their structure, functions and modification. Stems, leaves, roots, flowers, fruits and seeds are successively taken up.. In each case official drugs from the various parts of the plant are lllustrated and their characteristic properties upon Whlfih thelf 1111313110111-Qldl MUCH depTlfeS sgcbnldolfaclf of the Junior year is devoted to a study of ln- organic Materia Medica. The various drugs are grouped aclcofding to their medicinal actions, the alkalies, mineral acids, the. a ogen - , b ' t k u as groups and then the drugs composing gliiieiulfoiiitpj ariusgudaiednfoiig special actionS, Glfhef COHJUTHTY JUQ, 013 111 a,ddi?i0n t0 the grgup properties already considered. In each instance the Offigial Latin and prescription titles and common names of these group members as Well as a complete definition and description are g1t'e3nI.ethOdS of preservation as Well as handling the various drugs in the lgbgrgtory periods aids the student in becoming thoroughly Page .61 ,U v v g W

Page 64 text:

fm. FVDX , XGVN T 'O 4 Cf-53,5 Pr-SAIIUVIAKON 52233 92 si? Materia Medica ARLIEST known of all medications was the use of herbs, either in their external application, as such, or in their lnternal administration by means of their water soluble e.Xtract1ves.. . Made a basis for a theory of the evolution of animal life, scientists have spent ages studying this manifestation of the abundance of nature's bounty seen in-the world around us, yes, even at our very doorsteps. f - ,. Through the history of the ages numerous examples can be cited where the treatment of diseases and the use of offensive tactics were grounded in a knowledge of the plants that grew in such abundance around primeval dwellings The stupefying effects of plants under certain ,conditions was known to the ancient priests and used as part of their sacrificial rituals The curative effects of qu1n1ne was said to be discovered by a savage drinking at a brook in which the leaves of the plant growing at its sides were steeped It was the discovery of the preservative values of certain plants that enabled provisions to be transported over long distances for many weeks with no loss of their edible qualities It was the condimentary properties of certain plants that made food more palatable not only in the middle ages but also at the present time T Alchemists in the olden days ' were famous for brewing love potions poisons and perfumes as well as medicines 1n addition to their other studies and have found their places 1n the histories of those times It is not to be wondered at then that the profession of Phar macy which has as its Lltima Thule the preparation and preserva tion of substances to preserve bodily functions spends so much of its time in studying those manifestations of nature that the layman sees from a merely superficial standpoint The department of Materia Medica Botany and Phaimacognosy is fortunate in having at its head a man who has spent years in 1ts mastery and whose love for his subject plays a large part in making a tedious and dry recital of essential facts a vital and living pait of our education namely Dr A P Lohness The instruction in this department extends throughout the college course and consists of a graded systematic series of lectui es wheiein each drug 1S considered separately its description, botanical o11g1n and family name noted, where it occurs naturally and vheie 1t can be cultivated what part of the plant can be used and how the medicinal constitutents can be best evtracted with a dmcussion of their therapeutic properties and the proper quant1t1es 111 which the finished product can be safely administered r P g 60 QA P C1- f l'J-

Page 66 text:

XQVN flgvaf Cc:g-Q3 pr-aAlIUV1,-QXKON M535 img'-3 lfamiliar with the physical properties of each inorganic drug considered in addition to giving him a knowledge of how the properly kept drug should appear in his pharmaceutical practice. The work of the Senior year is in the main, based upon the prepa- ration received in the first year of instruction.. The physical appear- ance of the drug is given special consideration and the student is enabled to detect by form, structure, color, odor, taste, fracture, etc., the various drugs. Special stress is laid upon cautious handling and dispensing of poisonous drugs and their principles, attention 1S also called to the methods of keeping Organic drugs in order to main- tain their best medicinal value. e n . One of the features of the course in the above connection is-the weekly drill in identification. In practice a druggist oft times receives a shipment of crude drugs, it isimportant for him to be able to detect whether or not the drug is labelled correctly and whether or not it comes up to the standards laid down in the United States Phar- macopoeia. To that end, each week the student is called uponto identify crude drugs Which aid in giving him greater familiarity with the materials he will handle in his practical work. In addition each student is furnished a type specimen of each drug studied, which, incidently forms a nucleus for aprivate herbarium. In addition to the macroscopic study of drugs, the future phar- macist is given a thorough ground work in the microscopical features of drugs, as well as those of such substances that are known to be used in their adulteration. Q As a foundation to this work the microscope is taken up in detail, its mechanical and optical structure is explained and the student is drilled in its use, typical microscopical structure and micro meas- urements being definitely recorded. y Through .its agency, the minute structures of drugs are carefully studied with peculiar- and characteristic features of each receiving special attention. Substances that appear in these drugs as adulter- ants are pointed out and enable the student to check up standard strengths of drugs, microscopically as well as macroscopically. Micro chemical tests are utilized wherever simple, effective and read- ily applied. The various medicinal substances are divided into classes according to their physical properties and similarities and dissimilarities are noted. At the end of his course the student finds himself with a complete knowledge of the various drugs used in pharmacy, their methods of preservation, recognition and therapeutical properties, and with this as a foundation he faces his task of preserving public health with confidence in his ability in regards to the organic drugs he will be called upon to handle in his practice. P e6 r ag 2 Sw CQ 4 v