Galphimia glauca - strong depressant activity on the nervous system
http://0-www.thieme-connect.com.library.ne...5/s-2007-981539
"...important anxiolytic effectiveness, very similar to that produced with lorazepam...his compound exhibited an innovative action mechanism and selectively inhibited dopaminergic neurons discharges in the ventral tegmental area [16] without exhibiting interaction with the GABAergic system [17]." Planta Med 2007; 73: 713-717
Cistus creticus - sedative effects
Matricaria recutita (maybe?) - apigenin is central benzodiazepine receptors exerting anxiolytic and slight sedative effects but not being anticonvulsant or myorelaxant.
Cedrol - cedarwood oil Sedative - suggests volatile inahlation
Euphorbia hirta - Analgesic, Antipyretic and Anti-Inflammatory
Egletes viscosa - gastroprotective and peripheral analgesic properties of diterpenes isolated from E. viscosa.
Byrsocarpus coccineus syn. Rourea coccinea - possess a dose determined anxiolytic – sedative activity with no effect on exploratory activity and locomotion.
http://www.ajol.info/viewarticle.php?id=26192
Helichrysums - antibacterial and monoamine oxidase inhibitory activity
http://0-www.thieme-connect.com.library.ne...5/s-2006-949814
"Pharmacological Investigation of Observed Anxiolytic Effects of the Marine Natural Product Aaptamine" Planta Medica 2008; 74
Aaptamine was administered in three doses (5, 10, 15 mg/kg i.m.) and the mice were observed for anxiolytic effects in an established chick social separation-stress model [3]. Results showed that separation-induced distress vocalizations were significantly attenuated in isolated chicks receiving 10 or 15 mg/kg aaptamine (ns = 12; ps < 0.05). However, higher concentrations of aaptamine were reported to induce a transient sedative state followed by motor incoordination. Thus the anxiolytic effects reported at the lower doses may be related to aaptamine's other behavioral effects. In an effort to identify receptor system(s) mediating this behavior, aaptamine was tested for its ability to compete for µ-, δ- and κ-opioid receptor binding (vs. 3H-DAMGO, 3H-DPDPE and 3H–U69593 respectively) in rat brain membranes. The results of receptor binding assays indicated low affinity of aaptamine for all three opioid receptors with Ki values 1.49 ± 0.07 µM for µ- and > 5 µM for δ- and κ-opioid receptors. Other sources cite Aaptamnine as an alpha-adrenergic receptor blocker. Does this explain the effects?
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6T8D-475TD0C-5D&_user=10&_coverDate=07%2F08%2F1994&_rdoc=1&_fmt=high&_orig=search&_origin=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=2c3bb6eda93339ced20cb5115469e44a&searchtype=a
Plants used for stress-related ailments in traditional Zulu, Xhosa and Sotho medicine. Part 1: Plants used for headaches Journal of Ethnopharmacology
Ethnobotanical inventory of medicinal plants used by the Guaymi Indians in Western Panama. Part I Journal of Ethnopharmacology
Volume 20, Issue 2, July 1987, Pages 145-171
http://0-www.sciencedirect.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6T8D-475B9CJ-4J&_user=915767&_coverDate=07%2F31%2F1987&_rdoc=5&_fmt=high&_orig=browse&_origin=browse&_zone=rslt_list_item&_srch=doc-info%28%23toc%235084%231987%23999799997%23357126%23FLP%23display%23Volume%29&_cdi=5084&_sort=d&_docanchor=&_ct=6&_acct=C000047922&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=915767&md5=93cba574962dc4217baf62b39c6274f4&searchtype=a
(Hamelia patens)
The effect of Tulbaghia violacea extracts on testosterone secretion by testicular cell cultures Journal of Ethnopharmacology
Volume 132, Issue 1, 28 October 2010, Pages 359-361
Note: I don't agree AT ALL with the aims of some organisations linked to below. But their effectiveness (or lack thereof) is worth studying.
Fundamentals For Effective Lobbying
Effective Lobbying Strategies
Tried out my latest successful Kanna type thing. Equal portions of Sceletium tortuosum (mostly stemmy material), D cooperi (probably) and Aptenia cordifolia (leaves, stems and roots) were fermented in plastic bag in a warm place for about 7 days. After drying in the sun for some time, the process was finished by a quick roast in the oven at 150 C to ensure dryness & to get rid of any remaining oxalates.
Inhaled a lot of the dust that came off when powdering/crushing. Ate a bit of stem (pleaseant nutty/toasty taste). Very strong buzz, much stronger than any sceletium only kanna I made previously. No heavyness in the limbs, quite a pronounced adrenalin like feeling. Pulse didn't rush, but I felt the air was really getting into my lungs.
This is of course not very conclusive by itself as my scelly is very stressed and this could explain the result. I will make preps of each individually over the next few weeks to see what comes out on top.
Is there an ethical problem with our community relying on animal studies?
Much , if not all, of the data I've dredged up lately has been based on animal testing, not all of it pleasant for the animals concerned. I'm generally against animal testing where it involves causing profound suffering and pain (note, not all animal testing does this) Furthermore animal testing can't really capture the subjective experience of a particular drug as we can't ask the mouse: "What was it like?" I'll leave the obvious "rats& mice aren't humans and therefore have differing metabolisms et" to one side.
So there are two potential problems here.
1. Cruelty
and
2. Lack of usefulness.
To expand on '1' - I don't like cruelty to animals, particularly when there is no good reason for it. So when I find a paper indicating that a certain herb has important analgesic or anti-anxiety effects on mice as ascertained by an experiment that caused the mice pain and suffering, and I use this information to bring to the community's attention an underutilized ethnogen, am I doing something unethical? I'm not sure, but if I am, what do I do about it? What's the ethical position? Do I not utilize studies that use animals in this way, because that rules out most cutting edge research. I don't know and will, think on it some more.
Problem 2 - If we give a rat something, how do we know if it is hallucinating or not, or if it is feeling less anxious, or what the qualitative nature of these feelins are like? I would contend that to a large extent that we don't, and so animal based data can't be a basis for anything other than physiological inferences at best! That these studies could be not so useful, makes the problem of cruelty even worse.
Someone very smart I know summed it up like this in a psych paper she recently wrote: If rats are similar enough to us to provide useful psychological data, then it's unethical to experiment on them. If they are dissimilar enough to experiment on, then they won't provide useful psychological data.
These links won't work for most people, sorry. Will post more info soon.
Alkaloids from Boophone disticha with affinity for the serotonin transporter
https://0-www.thieme-connect.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/ejournals/abstract/plantamedica/doi/10.1055/s-0028-1084063
A preliminary inventory of plants used for psychoactive purposes in southern African healing traditions
http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a921267239
Review on plants with CNS-effects used in traditional South African medicine against mental diseases
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6T8D-4T72WVG-5&_user=915767&_coverDate=10%2F28%2F2008&_rdoc=1&_fmt=high&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_searchStrId=1420657713&_rerunOrigin=google&_acct=C000047922&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=915767&md5=b64318190e53c794a3a42440f720a037
Mmmmm Boophone sp!
I was thinking about the ions that migrate towards electrodes in solution. Two thoughts occur to me:
1. Will wiring a plant up with the anode on the aerial parts and the cathode in the soil cause an increased amount of negative ions to migrate out of the soil and into (and up) the plant? (Or the other way around if I have this arse-backwards, I haven't done any physics/electronics for years). If this is the case, then the direction of the current would be an important factor and should produce different results if varied, something that could be put to good use. There should be existing research on this and I'll post links as I find them.
2. If you run current through a solution (aqueous obviously) of an alkaloid salt, will the positive ions, in this case the alkaloid, migrate to the cathode? I think they would. If it forms crystals in its freebase form, then it should literally grow on that electrode! Of course in a dirty solution there would be all sorts of other crud attracted. I don't expect that you can throw a couple of wires into some pedro tea and pull them out with glistening crystals attached a few hours later. But I do wonder if it is worth a try. Surely this is something other people have tried before?
http://www.shaman-australis.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=3542&view=findpost&p=31225
http://www.shaman-australis.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=22932&view=findpost&p=237276
http://www.shaman-australis.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=19199&view=findpost&p=191169
http://www.shaman-australis.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=4902&view=findpost&p=44532
More to come
Finally something kind of definitive on Candicine: "Nicotine-like action on the nervous system. In animals it provokes hypertension, while large doses have a curare-like action." Phytochemical Dictionary
USe caution when consuming large amounts of T. spachianius.
N, N, N-trimethyltyramine chloride - Starting to make sense now.
