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Biology & Ethnobotany

Ayahuasca and Sumak Kawsay: Challenges to the Implementation of the Principle of “Buen Vivir,” Religious Freedom, and Cultural Heritage Protection

September 15, 2016 / Anthropology & Sociology, Ayahuasca, Biology & Ethnobotany, Papers, Publications / By / , , ,

Abstract

The current environmental crisis can be approached, through many perspectives, as a civilizational crisis. Alternatives of human transcendence are identified in the Inca civilization to compensate for the malaise that characterizes the actual crisis. There is a multicultural dimension to the manifestations of Hoasca (or Ayahuasca) occurring in Amazonian countries. As employed by the Beneficent Spiritist Center União do Vegetal (UDV) in a religious context, it can contribute to the reconstruction of buen vivir (or in Quechua, sumak kawsay, meaning complete wellness), which served as the principle of the civilizations that preceded the colonization of the Americas by Europeans. Today, the State openly confronts the manifestation of the constitutional principles of buen vivir, religious freedom, and the protection of this cultural heritage. Here, the implications of the civilizational crisis and ways of overcoming it are approached from the standpoint of deep ecology, but the implications also reflect the doctrinal vision of the UDV to which the authors are affiliated.

Irigaray, C. T. J., Girard, P., Irigaray, M., & Silva, C. J. (2016). Ayahuasca and Sumak Kawsay: Challenges to the Implementation of the Principle of “Buen Vivir,” Religious Freedom, and Cultural Heritage Protection. Anthropology of Consciousness, 27(2), 204-225. 10.1111/anoc.12057
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Ayahuasca Treatment Center Safety for the Western Seeker

September 15, 2016 / Anthropology & Sociology, Ayahuasca, Biology & Ethnobotany, Papers, Psychology, Publications / By / ,

Abstract

Ayahuasca, an ancient Amazonian psychedelic tea traditionally used ceremonially among indigenous peoples, has recently become known as a possible treatment for a wide range of disorders. The awareness of this sacred medicine has grown exponentially over the past decade, attracting westerners from a wide variety of backgrounds, hoping to find treatment for a myriad of emotional and physical illnesses, as well as spiritual needs. In the wake of the commercialization and westernization of the use of ayahuasca, and the subsequent proliferation of ayahuasca treatment centers, this paper examines the benefits and possible risks of this form of therapy in an effort to create a safety protocol for Westerners in this context. The most practical approach to increasing safety for Westerners attending these Amazonian treatment centers is to educate the seeker prior to treatment and to provide access to specialized therapeutic aftercare services.

Ray, R. R., & Lassiter, K. S. (2016). Ayahuasca Treatment Center Safety for the Western Seeker. Anthropology of Consciousness, 27(2), 121-150. 10.1111/anoc.12060
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Psychological and neuropsychological assessment of regular hoasca users

September 12, 2016 / Ayahuasca, Biology & Ethnobotany, Papers, Psychology, Publications / By / , , , , ,

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Hoasca (also called ayahuasca) is a N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) – containing psychedelic brew originally used for magico-religious purposes by Amerindian populations of the Amazon Basin. Recently, Brazilian syncretic churches have helped spread the ritual use of hoasca to Western societies. The aim of this study was to evaluate substance use, and neuropsychological and psychological functioning of regular hoasca users within a religious setting.

METHODS: Assessment of socio-economic status, mood, personality traits, impulsiveness, drug use, quality of life, extrinsic and intrinsic religiosity, and neuropsychological function was performed on 30 volunteers from a U.S. branch of União do Vegetal (UDV), a Brazilian religion which uses hoasca ritually. We also assessed 27 non-hoasca-using control subjects matched by socio-demographic profile and church attendance. Mann-Whitney U, chi-squared and Fisher tests were used to analyze differences between groups. Spearman’s association and simple logistic regression tests were used to analyze the impact of frequency of hoasca use on dependent variables.

RESULTS: Relative to the control group, the UDV group demonstrated lower scores for depression (p=0.043, r=.27) and confusion (p=0.032, r=.29) as assessed by the Profile of Mood States (POMS); higher scores on the instrument Big Five Inventory (BFI) for the personality traits agreeableness (p=0.028, r=.29) and openness (p=0.037, r=.28); higher scores on the quality life domain role limitations due to physical health as determined by the instrument Medical Outcomes Study Short Form-36 – SF-36 (p=0.035, r=.28); less recent use of alcohol (p<0.001, φc=.57), greater past use of alcohol to intoxication (p=0.007, φc=.36) and past use of cannabis (p=0.001, φc=.45) as measured by the Addiction Severity Index (ASI), 5th edition; better score on a measure of memory vulnerability to proactive interference as measured by the California Verbal Learning Test – CVLT (p=0.040, r=.27). Lifetime use of hoasca was positively correlated with role limitations due to physical health (p=0.032, rs=.39) and negatively associated with lifetime heavy alcohol use (p=0.034, OR=0.979).

CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicate that religious use of hoasca does not adversely affect neuropsychological functioning and may have positive effects on substance abuse and mood.

Barbosa, P. C. R., Strassman, R. J., da Silveira, D. X., Areco, K., Hoy, R., Pommy, J., … & Bogenschutz, M. (2016). Psychological and neuropsychological assessment of regular hoasca users. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 71, 95-105. 0.1016/j.comppsych.2016.09.003

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Salvia divinorum: toxicological aspects and analysis in human biological specimens

June 9, 2016 / Biology & Ethnobotany, Papers, Publications, Salvia / Salvinorin A / By / , , ,

Abstract

The identification and quantitation of the main psychoactive component of Salvia divinorum (salvinorin A) in biological specimens are crucial in forensic and clinical toxicology. Despite all the efforts made, its uncontrolled abuse has increased quickly, exposing its users’ health to serious risks both in the short and long term. The use of alternative biological matrices in toxicological analyzes can be advantageous as complementary postmortem samples, or in situations when neither blood nor urine can be collected; they may be useful tools in those determinations, providing important information about prior exposure. The aim of this article is to present a brief summary of legal aspects of Salvia divinorum and salvinorin A, including the methods used for the determination of the latter in biological matrices.

Margalho, C., Corte-Real, F., López-Rivadulla, M., & Gallardo, E. (2016). Salvia divinorum: toxicological aspects and analysis in human biological specimens. Bioanalysis, (0). http://dx.doi.org/10.4155/bio-2016-0067

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On the Origin of the Genus Psilocybe and Its Potential Ritual Use in Ancient Africa and Europe

May 10, 2016 / Biology & Ethnobotany, Humanities & Art, Mushrooms / Psilocybin, Papers, Publications / By / , ,

Abstract

On the Origin of the Genus Psilocybe and Its Potential Ritual Use in Ancient Africa and Europe. The role of altered states of consciousness in the production of geometric and figurative art by prehistoric cultures in Africa and Europe has been hotly debated. Helvenston and Bahn have tried to refute the most famous hypothesis, Lewis-Williams’ neuropsychological model, by claiming that appropriate visual hallucinations required the ingestion of LSD, psilocybin, or mescaline, while arguing that none of these compounds were available to the cultures in question. We present here mycological arguments that tell another story. A prehistoric worldwide distribution of the mushroom genus Psilocybe, and therefore of psilocybin, is supported by the existence of endemic species in America, Africa, and Europe, the disjunct distribution of sister species, and the possibility of long-distance spore dispersal. It is more difficult to point to instances of actual prehistoric ritual use in Africa and Europe, but there are a growing number of suggestive findings.

Froese, T., Guzmán, G., & Guzmán-Dávalos, L. (2016). On the Origin of the Genus Psilocybe and Its Potential Ritual Use in Ancient Africa and Europe1. Economic Botany, 1-12. http://http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12231-016-9342-2
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Plant and Fungal Hallucinogens as Toxic and Therapeutic Agents

November 9, 2015 / Biology & Ethnobotany, DMT, Mescaline / Cacti, Mushrooms / Psilocybin, Papers, Psychology, Publications, Salvia / Salvinorin A / By / ,

Abstract

This chapter aimed to provide an overview of the large number of hallucinogens of natural origin. Following a literature review, the following hallucinogens were selected for a detailed description that considered their essential chemical groups: indoleamines (N,N-dimethyltryptamine, 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine, bufotenine, psilocybin, and ibogaine), phenylethylamines (mescaline), tropane alkaloids (atropine and scopolamine), cannabinoids (Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol), and a neoclerodane diterpenoid (salvinorin A). The following species were included as representative of each drug class: Mimosa tenuiflora, Psychotria viridis, Banisteriopsis caapi, Virola spp., Psilocybe spp., Tabernanthe iboga, Tabernaemontana spp., Lophophora spp., Trichocereus spp., Atropa belladonna, Brugmansia spp., Cannabis sativa, and Salvia divinorum, among others. In addition to psychopharmacological effects, this chapter aims to address the sociocultural and historical use of these hallucinogenic plants and mushrooms, along with the importance of both the set and the setting factors that affect the profound consciousness-altering effects of these compounds. Moreover, the use of animal models to predict the hallucinogenic properties of psychoactive plants and compounds and to investigate the mechanisms of action of psychodysleptic drugs is discussed. This chapter also attempts to establish a parallel between hallucinogens and endogenous neurotransmitters in humans, to compare the pharmacological and psychic action of these compounds, to evaluate hallucinogens’ ability to produce symptoms typical of certain mental disorders during their use, and to investigate the role of these compounds as therapeutic agents in several psychopathological conditions.

Carlini, E. A., & Maia, L. O. (2015). Plant and Fungal Hallucinogens as Toxic and Therapeutic Agents.

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Salvinorin A, a kappa-opioid receptor (KOP-r) agonist hallucinogen: Pharmacology and potential template for novel pharmacotherapeutic agents in neuropsychiatric disorders

September 8, 2015 / Biology & Ethnobotany, Neuroscience, Papers, Psychology, Publications, Salvia / Salvinorin A / By / ,

Abstract

Salvinorin A is a potent hallucinogen, isolated from the ethnomedical plant Salvia divinorum. Salvinorin A is a selective high efficacy kappa-opioid receptor (KOPr) agonist, and thus implicates the KOPr system and its endogenous agonist ligands (the dynorphins) in higher functions, including cognition and perceptual effects. Salvinorin A is the only selective KOPr ligand to be widely available outside research or medical settings, and salvinorin A-containing products have undergone frequent non-medical use. KOPr/dynorphin systems in the brain are known to be powerful counter-modulatory mechanisms to dopaminergic function, which is important in mood and reward engendered by natural and chemical reinforcers (including drugs of abuse). KOPr activation (including by salvinorin A) can thus cause aversion and anhedonia in preclinical models. Salvinorin A is also a completely new scaffold for medicinal chemistry approaches, since it is a non-nitrogenous neoclerodane, unlike other known opioid ligands. Ongoing efforts have the goal of discovering novel semi-synthetic salvinorin analogs with potential KOPr-mediated pharmacotherapeutic effects (including partial agonist or biased agonist effects), with a reduced burden of undesirable effects associated with salvinorin A.

Butelman, E., & Kreek, M. J. (2015). Salvinorin A, a kappa-opioid receptor (KOP-r) agonist hallucinogen: Pharmacology and potential template for novel pharmacotherapeutic agents in neuropsychiatric disorders. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 6, 190. http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2015.00190
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‘Whatever you want to believe’ kaleidoscopic individualism and ayahuasca healing in Australia

July 14, 2015 / Anthropology & Sociology, Ayahuasca, Biology & Ethnobotany, Papers, Psychology, Publications / By /

Abstract

Over the last fifteen years the use of the indigenous Amazonian psychoactive beverage ayahuasca has been reimagined in alternative healing circles of Western countries. This paper explores the practice of ayahuasca neoshamanism in Australia and examines ways in which acts of vomiting and ecstatic trance-visions involve heightened affective states and moral projects of healing. Aspects of everyday life are purged, rearticulated, and reconstituted in rituals where codes of conduct and discursive exchange encourage practices of personal evaluation and reflexivity that appear to index ideologies of individualism. Through exploring social and discursive prohibitions and forms of sensory organisation, the practice of drinking ayahuasca in Australia is shown to be constituted by ritual conventions that define the individual as autonomous and responsible in relation to ecstatic trance and articulations of wellbeing.

Gearin, A. K. (2015). ‘Whatever you want to believe’kaleidoscopic individualism and ayahuasca healing in Australia. The Australian Journal of Anthropology. https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/taja.12143
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A Thread in The Vine: The Deep Ecology of Contemporaray Ayahuasca Discourse

June 11, 2015 / Anthropology & Sociology, Ayahuasca, Biology & Ethnobotany, Papers, Philosophy & Religious Studies, Publications / By / ,

Abstract

This thesis uses the philosophy of deep ecology as a theoretical framework to explore ecospiritual themes as a key feature of increasing discourse around the ayahuasca phenomenon. The broad objective of the research is to use contemporary ayahuasca discourse to reveal the way cross-cultural seekers engage with and discuss shamanic practices that inform a postmodern ecosophical ontology and deep ecological praxis. Three convergent discourses inform this research; the transcultural ayahuasca phenomenon, nature-based spiritualities of the New Age and the philosophy of deep ecology. Threading through these discourses are ecological and spiritual themes that capture a web of meanings for contextualising the transcultural emergence of ayahuasca
spirituality. A key paradigmatic shift suggested by contemporary ayahuasca discourse is a shift in human consciousness toward a non-dualistic ontology regarding humanity’s place in nature. An ecocultural studies approach provides theoretical support for interpreting how the elements of this paradigmatic shift are discussed, understood and practiced. As the internet functions as a superlative site for discursive formations of ayahuasca, a thematic content analysis of selected discussion forums within the Ayahuasca.com website was conducted using a multiparadigmatic, deductive and inductive approach. Naess and Sessions’ (1984) eight platform principles of deep ecology were used as a framework to deductively locate textual articulations of the philosophy. Further inductive analysis revealed not only embedded deep ecological themes but also articulations of an ecocentric praxis arising from experiences of unitary consciousness and plant sentience. The deep ecology articulated in contemporary ayahuasca discourse further raised an explicit challenge to hegemonic anthropocentricism through expressions of an expanded sense of self that accentuates the countercultural bearings of entheogenic informed ecospirituality.

Baker, J., & Coco, D. A. A Thread in the Vine: The Deep Ecology of Contemporary Ayahuasca Discourse. https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.1.3040.2729

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Hunting and hallucinogens: The use psychoactive and other plants to improve the hunting ability of dogs.

May 28, 2015 / Biology & Ethnobotany, Papers, Publications / By / ,

Abstract

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE:
Cultures throughout the world give plants to their dogs in order to improve hunting success. These practices are best developed in lowland Ecuador and Peru. There is no experimental evidence for the efficacy of these practices nor critical reviews that consider possible pharmacological effects on dogs based on the chemistry of the ethnoverterinary plants.

AIM:
This review has three specific aims: (1) determine what plants the Ecuadorian Shuar and Quichua give to dogs to improve their hunting abilities, (2) determine what plants other cultures give to dogs for the same purpose, and (3) assess the possible pharmacological basis for the use of these plants, particularly the psychoactive ones?

METHODS:
We gathered Shuar (Province of Morona-Santaigo) and Quichua (Napo and Orellano Provinces) data from our previous publications and field notes. All specimens were vouchered and deposited in QCNE with duplicates sent to NY and MO. Data presented from other cultures derived from published studies on ethnoveterinary medicine. Species names were updated, when necessary, and family assignments follow APG III (Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, 2009. An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG III. Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 161, 105-121). Chemical data were found using PubMed and SciFinder.

RESULTS:
The Shuar and Quichua of Ecuador use at least 22 species for ethnoveterinary purposes, including all but one of their principal hallucinogens. Literature surveys identified 43 species used in other cultures to improve hunting ability. No published studies have examined the pharmacological active of these plant species in dogs. We, thus, combined phytochemical data with the ethnobotanical reports of each plant and then classified each species into a likely pharmacological category: depuratives/deodorant, olfactory sensitizer, ophthalmic, or psychoactive.

CONCLUSIONS:
The use of psychoactive substances to improve a dog׳s hunting ability seems counterintuitive, yet its prevalence suggests that it is both adaptive and that it has an underlying pharmacological explanation. We hypothesize that hallucinogenic plants alter perception in hunting dogs by diminishing extraneous signals and by enhancing sensory perception (most likely olfaction) that is directly involved in the detection and capture of game. If this is true, plant substances also might enhance the ability of dogs to detect explosives, drugs, human remains, or other targets for which they are valued.

Bennett, B. C., & Alarcón, R. (2015). Hunting and Hallucinogens: The use psychoactive and other Plants to improve the Hunting ability of dogs. Journal of Ethnopharmacology. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2015.05.035
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