Coclaurine is a nicotinic acetylcholine receptor antagonist which has been isolated from a variety of plant sources including Nelumbo nucifera, Sarcopetalum harveyanum, Ocotea duckei, and others. It belongs to the class of tetrahydroisoquinoline alkaloids. Structurally it is a benzyl-tetrahydroisoquinoline containing two phenolic hydroxyl groups and a stereogenic center, commonly encountered as optically active enantiomers. The compound has limited aqueous solubility and dissolves readily in polar organic solvents such as methanol and ethanol. Typical analytical characterization employs HPLC with UV detection, LC-MS confirmation and one and two dimensional NMR for structural assignment. Reported bioactivity is primarily receptor level antagonism at specific nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes observed in in vitro binding and electrophysiology assays, and it functions biosynthetically as an intermediate in pathways that produce more complex benzylisoquinoline alkaloids. Material is usually provided as a defined free base or salt with standard quality control testing including assay, impurity profiling and residual solvent analysis.
Parent: Coclaurine
Typical specification for isolated coclaurine used in research and material supply is assay 98.0 percent or greater by validated HPLC, with total related alkaloid impurities not exceeding 2.0 percent. Characterized related compounds and typical upper limits are N-methylcoclaurine up to 0.5 percent, norcoclaurine up to 0.5 percent, reticuline up to 0.5 percent and other tetrahydroisoquinoline alkaloids combined up to 1.0 percent. Residual solvents are controlled in accordance with ICH guidelines, heavy metals are limited to low ppm levels, and water content is monitored by Karl Fischer. Identification and quantitation of impurities are performed by LC-MS against reference standards when available and by NMR for structure confirmation. For crude plant extracts the relative proportions of these related alkaloids can vary substantially depending on species, tissue, harvest conditions and extraction method, so a certificate of analysis should accompany each batch.
Coclaurine is used primarily as a research chemical for pharmacology and natural product studies, including receptor binding and electrophysiology work on nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, biosynthetic and metabolic pathway investigations, and as a reference standard for analytical method development. It is not an approved therapeutic agent and should be handled under appropriate laboratory safety procedures.
Chloropicrin is commonly referred to as nitrochloroform and is also known by the systematic name trichloronitromethane.
