Identity of a New World Psychoactive Toad
Ancient Mesoamerica 1992 DOI: 10.1017/s0956536100002297 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Bufo alvarius toad venom |
| Topics | 5-MeO-DMT |
| Keywords | Ancient mesoamerican rituals Sonoran desert toad Ethnopharmacology |
| Citations | 33 |
| Key findings | The Sonoran desert toad's venom, containing 5-MeO-DMT, is safely and powerfully psychoactive when smoked, making it a likely candidate for ancient Mesoamerican ritual use. |
Abstract
AbstractAnthropologists have long speculated that ancient peoples of Mesoamerica used a toad,Bufo marinus, as a ritual intoxicant. This hypothesis rests on many iconographic and mythological representations of toads and on a number of speculative ethnographic reports. We rejectB. marinusas a candidate for such use because of the toxicity of its venom. A more likely candidate is the Sonoran desert toad,Bufo alvarius, which secretes large amounts of the potent, known hallucinogen, 5-methoxy-N, N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT). We demonstrate that the venom ofB. alvarius, though known to be toxic when consumed orally, may be safely smoked and is powerfully psychoactive by that route of administration. These experiments are the first documentation of a hallucinogenic agent from the animal kingdom, and they provide clear evidence of a psychoactive toad that could have been employed by Precolumbiae peoples of the New World.
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on 5-MeO-DMT, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Short term changes in the proteome of human cerebral organoids induced by 5-MeO-DMT. Human cerebral organoids | 2017 | Experimental study | |
| Bufo alvarius: a potent hallucinogen of animal origin. Bufo alvarius toad venom | 1994 | Experimental study | |
| Prospective examination of synthetic 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine inhalation: effects on salivary IL-6, cortisol levels, affect, and non-judgment Volunteers | 2019 | Within-subjects experimental study | n = 11 |
| Unmasking of a neonatal somatovesical reflex in adult cats by the serotonin autoreceptor agonist 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine. Adult cats | 1990 | Experimental study | n = 10 |
| Studies on the Mechanism of Action of Monoamine Oxidase: Metabolism of N,N-Dimethyltryptamine and N,N-Dimethyltryptamine-N-Oxide | 1962 | Experimental study |
Citations in the library
Cited by 14
- Bufo alvarius: a potent hallucinogen of animal origin. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 1994
- Bufo toads and bufotenine: fact and fiction surrounding an alleged psychedelic. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs 1996
- Bufotenine: toward an understanding of possible psychoactive mechanisms. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs 2000
- New World Tryptamine Hallucinogens and the Neuroscience of Ayahuasca. Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences 2018
- New World Tryptamine Hallucinogens and the Neuroscience of Ayahuasca Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences 2015
and 9 more in the library
Cites 7
- Monoamine oxidase inhibitors in South American hallucinogenic plants: Tryptamine and β-carboline constituents of Ayahuasca Journal of Ethnopharmacology April 1, 1984
- Behavioral effects of 5-methoxy-N:N-dimethyltryptamine, other tryptamines, and LSD American Journal of Physiology-Legacy Content July 1, 1962
- Tobacco and Shamanism in South America The Latin American Anthropology Review December 1, 1991
- Ethnomedical, Botanical and Phytochemical Aspects of Natural Hallucinogens Botanical Museum leaflets Harvard University June 1, 1980
- Monoamine oxidase inhibitors in South American hallucinogenic plants Part 2: Constituents of orally-active Myristicaceous hallucinogens. Journal of Ethnopharmacology November 1, 1984
and 2 more in the library