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subsequently investigated by Liebig and Wöhler, and others. It is extracted from almond cake by boiling alcohol; on evaporation of the solution and the addition of ether, amygdalin is precipitated as white minute crystals. Sulphuric acid decomposes it into d-glucose , benzaldehyde, and prussic acid ( hydrogen cyanide); while hydrochloric acid gives mandelic acid , d-glucose, and ammonia. The decomposition induced by enzymes may occur in two ways. Maltase partially decomposes it, giving d-glucose and mandelic nitrile glucoside, C₆H₅CH(CN)O·C₆H₁₁O₅; this compound is isomeric with sambunigrin , a glucoside found by E.E. Bourquelot and Danjou in the berries of the common elder, Sambucus nigra. Emulsin , on the other hand, decomposes it into benzaldehyde, cyanide, and two molecules of glucose; this enzyme occurs in the bitter almond, and consequently the seeds invariably contain free cyanide and benzaldehyde. An "amorphous amygdalin" is said to occur in the cherry-laurel. Closely related to these glucosides is dhurrin , C₁₄H₁₇O₇N, isolated by W. Dunstan and T. A. Henry from the common sorghum or "great millet," Sorghum vulgare; this substance is decomposed by emulsin or hydrochloric acid into d-glucose, cyanide, and p-hydroxybenzaldehyde .

Amygdalin is also called laevomandelonitrile, or Laetrile (some claim that Laetrile is derived from a LatinAlternative meanings: See Latin (disambiguation Latin was the language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. It gained great importance as the formal language of the Roman Empire. All Romance languages are descended from Latin, and ma word meaning "joyfulness") for short, and has been advocated by some as a "cure" or a "preventative" for cancerFor other meanings of Cancer: see Cancer (disambiguation . apoptosis; cancer cells, however, avoid apoptosis. Cancer is a group of related diseases characterized by uncontrolled cell division. Currently, it is believed that cancers arise from both genetic: as there is no evidence of its efficacy, it has not been approved for this use by the FDA. The US government's National Institutes of HealthThe National Institutes of Health is an institution of the United States government which focuses on medical research. The Institutes are located in Bethesda, Maryland. The predecessor of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) began in 1887 as the Labora reports that two clinical trials with laetrile have been published. One Phase I study found that amygdalin caused minimal side effects; the side effects that were seen were similar to the symptoms of cyanideA cyanide is any chemical compound that contains the group C≡N, with the carbon atom triple bonded to the nitrogen atom. Inorganic cyanides contain the highly toxic cyanide ion C N- and are the salts of the acid hydrogen cyanide ( HCN). Organic cyan poisoning. One Phase II study with 175 patients had some patients reporting improvements in symptoms, but all patients showed cancer progression 7 months after completing treatment, and it was determined no further tests were necessary. No double-blind, controlled clinical trials have been conducted.

In 19741974 is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). Events January-February January 5 Dungeons & Dragons officially released. February 4 Patricia Hearst, the 19 year old granddaughter of publisher William Randolph Hearst, is kidnapped, the American Cancer SocietyThe American Cancer Society is a charitable organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. The Society works to prevent cancer, save lives, and lessen suffering from cancer. The Society supports research, education, and issue-specific advocacy to achieve t officially labelled Laetrile as "quackery," but even today many American and Canadian cancer patients travel to MexicoThis article is about the country Mexico. For other meanings, see Mexico (disambiguation The United Mexican States or Mexico ( Spanish: Estados Unidos Mexicanos or Mexico regarding the use of the variant spelling Mejico see section The name below) is a co for treatment with the substance, under the auspices of Dr. Ernesto Contreras . Curiously, Laetrile's foremost advocates within the United States can be found both on the far left of the political spectrum (e.g., The Village Voice) and the far right (e.g., The John Birch Society).

Though it is sometimes sold as "Vitamin B17", it does not fulfill the classic definition of a vitamin, as no disease is associated with a dietary deficiency of Laetrile. This commercial product is extracted from apricot seeds, which are in the same genus ( Prunus) as the almond.

This article incorporates text from the public domain 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica. 1911 Britannica