LSD and JB318: A Comparison of Two Hallucinogens

LSD-25 and JB 318, a newer psychotomimetic drug with atropine-like effects, were compared in the same population using identical measurement techniques. The LSD-induced psychosis serves as a standard reference for psychotomimetic agents, and direct comparison clarifies similarities and differences between the two drugs' effects on mood, thought, perception, and behavior. Administering both agents to the same subjects helps infer which aspects of the drug-induced state are shared or distinct.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Introduction Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD-25) has been the most commonly employed hallucinogenic agent in psychopharmacologic studies. LSD-induced changes in mood, thought, perception, and behavior and in psychological test performance have been widely studied.1-8More recently JB 318 (N-ethyl-3-piperidyl benzilate), a psychotomimetic drug with atropine-like autonomic effects, has been described.9,10For several reasons, it was deemed advisable to compare the effects of the two agents on the same population, utilizing the same techniques of measurement. First, the LSD psychosis has become a sort of standard of reference among psychotomimetic agents, and newer drug effects may be better understood when compared with the standard. It was further postulated that in a direct comparison study, differences and similarities in the effects of the two drugs could be defined relatively clearly. If both agents were administered at least in part, to infer what aspects of to the same subjects, it should