Over the last decade, many new psychostimulant analogues have appeared on the recreational drug market and most are derivatives of amphetamine or cathinone. Another class of designer drugs is derived from the 2-aminoindan structural template. Several members of this class, including the parent compound 2-aminoindan (2-AI), have been sold as designer drugs. Another aminoindan derivative,...
The real or perceived proximity to death often results in a non-ordinary state of consciousness characterized by phenomenological features such as the perception of leaving the body boundaries, feelings of peace, bliss and timelessness, life review, the sensation of traveling through a tunnel and an irreversible threshold. Near-death experiences (NDEs) are comparable among individuals of...
February 27, 2019Matheus Arts, Linda de Jonge, S. Petrykiv1 citation
Background: Ayahuasca, also called yagu00e9, is a psychoactive potion of various plant infusions consisting of the Banisteriopsis caapi vine, containing beta-carbolines, and the leaves of the N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT)-containing Psychotria viridis, which acts as a potent agonist to 5-HT2a receptors. Drinking ayahuasca has recently become very popular in shamanistic u2018healing...
Pain is the most prevalent symptom of a health condition, and it is inappropriately treated in many cases. Here, we present a case report in which we observe a long-lasting analgesic effect produced by changa, a psychedelic drug that contains the psychoactive N,N-dimethyltryptamine and ground seeds of Peganum harmala, which are rich in β-carbolines. We describe the case and offer a brief review...
Identification of the biological features of autism is essential for designing an efficient treatment and for prevention of the disorder. Though the subject of extensive research, the neurophysiological features of autism remain unclear. One of the proposed biological causes of autism is malfunction of the pineal gland and deficiency of its principal hormone, melatonin. The main function of...
Ayahuasca is a beverage obtained from decoctions of the liana Banisteriopsis caapi plus the shrub Psychotria viridis. This beverage contains a combination of monoamine oxidase inhibitors (harmine, harmaline, and tetrahydroharmine) and N,N-dimethyltryptamine, the main substance responsible for its visionary effect. The ritualistic use of ayahuasca is becoming a global phenomenon. Most members of...
In a recent article in this journal, Dos Santos et al. (2018) report a case of ayahuasca use by a man with aphantasia. This account is the first such report of the use of a psychedelic agent by someone with aphantasia. Surprisingly, the case, SE, reported an improvement in their visual imagery following one particular instance of ayahuasca use. In support of Dos Santos et al.’s (2018) favored...
Ayahuasca is a beverage used in religious rituals of indigenous and nonindigenous groups, and its therapeutic potential has been investigated. Ayahuasca is obtained by decoction of the Banisteriopsis caapi that contains β‐carbolines (harmine, harmaline, and tetrahydroharmine) plus Psychotria viridis that contains N , N ‐dimethyltryptamine. Although plants used in folk medicine are recognized as...
Abstract Tryptamines can occur naturally in plants, mushrooms, microbes, and amphibians. Synthetic tryptamines are sold as new psychoactive substances (NPS) because of their hallucinogenic effects. When it comes to NPS, metabolism studies are of crucial importance, due to the lack of pharmacological and toxicological data. Different approaches can be taken to study in vitro and in vivo...
PhytochemistryNovember 2018Gabrielle Macedo Pereira, Letícia Gondim Lambert Moreira, Themístocles da Silva Negreiros Neto et al.
Stem bark, root bark, and leaf extracts of Erythroxylum pungens were subjected to phytochemical analysis. N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) was isolated and characterized from E. pungens roots. This unprecedented result is remarkable since no indole alkaloid has been previously reported from Erythroxylaceae so far. Eleven known tropane alkaloids were identified by their mass spectra and...