Galanthamine，White or slightly yellow crystalline powder. Odorless, bitter taste. Melting point 127~129 ℃, [α] D20-118.8 ° (ethanol). Soluble in ethanol, acetone, chloroform, insoluble in benzene, ether and water. After reaction with ammonium molybdate solution, water bath, evaporate, sulfuric acid is added ，it turns to blue-green. Use bulbs of Lycoris squamigera Maxim as raw material, under different acidity ， extract and refine repeatedly with ethanol and chloroform to obtain the product . It belongs to anti-cholinesterase drugs.It is used for sequelae of infantile paralysis and myasthenia gravis. Medicinal use is its hydrobromide.

Galantamine is an alkaloid that has been found in Galanthus and has acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitory and nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) potentiating activities.It selectively inhibits AChE over butyrylcholinesterase (BChE; IC₅₀s = 636 and 8,404 nM, respectively).Galantamine (0.5 µM) potentiates ACh-induced currents in HEK293 cells expressing human α4β2 subunit-containing nAChRs. In vivo, galantamine (1.3 mg/kg per day) decreases escape latency and path length in the Morris water maze in the APP23 transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease. Formulations containing galantamine have been used in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.

Before the 1990s, galantamine was mainly used to treat poliomyelitis sequelae, muscle atrophy, postoperative intestinal muscle paralysis, urinary retention, and myasthenia gravis. In the 1990s, it was found that galantamine had improved memory impairment in mice, suggesting that it might be effective for central cholinergic disorders in Alzheimer’s disease
In a 3–6 months’ well-designed clinical trial, recipients of galantamine achieved significant improvements in cognitive symptoms compared to placebo recipients. Galantamine also improved activities of daily living in these patients and significantly reduced the requirement for caregiver assistance with activities of daily living. Clinical development of new indications of galanthamine is currently underway, such as smoking cessation and improving cognitive impairment in schizophrenia and mania.