Hallucinogens: Serotonin Enhancers Flashcards
Where is serotonin derived from?
Amino acid tryptophan.
What is serotonin?
A common neurotransmitters of the CNS, occurring most commonly in the upper brain stem.
What are the roles of serotonin?
Regulation of body temperature, sleep and sensory perception.
What are serotonin enhancers, which stimulate the serotonin receptors of the CNS, classified as?
Powerfully hallucinogenic.
How would you describe the IBOGA?
A low woody shrub (2m).
What family does the Iboga belong to
The Periwinkle (Apocynaceae) family.
Where is Iboga native to?
Tropical West Africa and is widely cultivated outside its native range in both West and Central Africa.
Which part of the iboga contains the active hallucinogenic principle ibogaine and has a long tradition of shamanistic use in West Africa?
The root.
What is the iboga root said to do?
Enhance psychic powers, increase inspiration, and assist in contemplation and is considered an important element of life.
What ritual is the iboga root incorporated into in which young women and children under the influence of iboga are said to reveal where they hid treasure in their former lives?
The oghanje or object ritual.
How was iboga used entheogenically?
Used as an important component of Bwiti cult of Gabon and Congo.
What is Bwiti?
A religious revitalization movement that developed during the period of social and cultural upheaval following European contact.
What does the Bwiti stress?
Stresses social cohesion and solidarity.
Along with enhancing psychic powers, increasing inspiration and assisting in contemplation, and is considered an important element of life, what is the iboga root used for?
It is used to facilitate visual hallucinations of a superior divinity known as the Bwiti, and to foster communications with the spirt world.
What is the active principle of the iboga root?
The indole alkaloid ibogaine, a powerful serotonin enhancer.
What are the effects of the indole alkaloid ibogaine?
Its effects are smilier to other hallucinogenic serotonin enhancers; it prompts strong visual and auditory hallucinations, and interferes with motor skills.
What happens to users of ibogaine?
They become highly suggestible, and gaze intently into space with blank expressions. A sensation of floating or flying is commonly reported.
In what type of therapy is ibogaine being investigated for use?
Opiate addiction therapy and alcohol, amphetamine and nicotine dependence.
Why is ibogaine being investigated for opiate addiction therapy?
It has been shown to calm the opiate receptors, thereby reducing the unpleasant symptoms of heroin withdrawal.
What limits ibogaine’s used as a therapeutic drug?
Its hallucinogenic properties limit its use however non-hallucinogenic semi-synthetic alternatives could potentially be developed.
What is the name of the hallucinogenic “magic” or “sacred” mushroom traditionally used in Central America?
Psilocybin mushrooms.
What genera exist?
Psilocybe, Conocybe, and Paneolus.
Where do these hallucinogenic magic mushrooms occur?
Mainly in the tropics, but some are found in temperate regions.
What are Psilocybin mushrooms used as?
Used as entheogens by the Aztecs.
What did the Aztecs name the Psilocybin mushrooms?
Teonanacatl or divine flesh.
What earlier civilizations did these mushrooms belong to?
Mayan.
What were these mushrooms used for in these Mayan civilization times?
Used to communicate with the spirit world, and in shamanistic practices to diagnose illnesses.
Who’s conquest of the Americas (1500s) forced the indigenous entheogenic use of psilocybin mushrooms underground?
Spanish.
Why did the Spanish conquest force this use of mushrooms underground?
Ritualistic use of these mushrooms was considered heretical by Roman Catholic clergy, and was discouraged on “pain of death”.
When did Spanish inquisitions go further, denouncing divine mushrooms as “devices of the devil” since they induced an ectastic state?
1620.
What was the result of Spanish inquisitions denouncing divine mushrooms as “devices of the devil” since they induced an ectastic state?
Shamanistic and cultural use of psilocybin mushrooms ceased in much of Central America.
Where did traditional use of the “divine flesh” persist into the 20th century?
Isolated areas of Mexico-remained unknown until 1950.
When did anthropologists propose an idea regarding the fact that hallucinogenic mushrooms did not exist and that the divine flesh was in fact reference to peyote cactus?
20th century.
When were anthropologists who proposed an idea regarding the fact that hallucinogenic mushrooms did not exist and that the divine flesh was in fact reference to peyote cactus proved wrong?
1930s, when botanists began to collect and classify sacred mushrooms.
Who witnessed shamanistic use of sacred mushrooms?
R. Gordon Wasson (1898-1986), who searched for mushroom purpose evidence in south Mexico.
Who was the mazaec shaman that invited Wasson to witness and participate in a sacred mushroom ceremony?
Maria Sabina.
When were Wasson’s findings published?
1957.
When was the traditional mushroom ceremony of Oaxaca compromised by an influx of American and European youth seeking the mushrooms for recreational purposes?
1960s.
What are the active principles of the sacred mushroom?
Psilocybin and psilocin, both potent serotonin mimics.
