COMPONENT ANALYSIS OF URUSHIOL CONTENT OF POISON IVY AND POISON OAK

The partial separation and quantitation of the components of the [allergenic] urushiol fraction of poison ivy and poison oak are discussed. The urushiol fraction of poison ivy is primarily composed of a C15 side-chain catechol; the urushiol extract of poision oak is principally the C17 homolog. The presence of a C17 homolog in ivy and a C15 homolog is poison oak urushiol was also detected. Each of these catechol derivatives contain a mixture of congeners which are partially separated by the GLC system used. In each case, the tri-olefinic component occurs in greatest abundance, and the mono-olefinic congener is least abundant; no saturated material was detected. The compounds were analyzed as trimethylsilyl derivatives and a qualitative analysis was accomplished by GC-MS [gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy].