Abstract
The name ‘laetrile’ was coined by Ernst Krebs, Jr. as a condensation of laevorotatory aminonitrile β-glucuronic acid1. The term laetrile as presently used refers to any one of a group of compounds that include amygdalin, prunasin, linamarin, and dhurrin. These compounds are correctly called ‘cyanogenic glycosides.’ The laetrile that is being used illicitly to treat cancer is amygdalin, a β-glucoside containing gentiobiose and the cyanhydrin, mandelonitrite, formed by condensation of benzaldehyde and hydrocyanic acid (HCN)2. Its structural formula is shown in Figure 1 from Conn3. Liebig and Wohler in 1837, described the hydrolysis of amygdalin by an enzyme they called ‘emulsin’ (actually, a mixture of enzymes) present in almonds to yield benzaldehyde, glucose and HCN (cyanide). These products are shown in Figure 1. The other cyanogenic glycosides all contain HCN, condensed with a ketone or aldehyde, and a carbohydrate in β-linkage. A list of some of these is shown in Table 1 taken from Conn2.
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References
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Jukes, T.H. (1982). Laetrile, the bogus ‘vitamin B17’. In: Neuberger, A., Jukes, T.H. (eds) Human Nutrition. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-6258-6_10
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-6258-6_10
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