Salvia 20x
The active principle in S. divinorum is salvinorin A, a furanolactone
neoclerodane diterpenThe active principle in S. divinorum is salvinorin A, a
furanolactone neoclerodane diterpene: Salvinorin A is hydrophobic, which
explains a lot about the methods of dosing; an infusion is always made using
fresh leaves, so that an emulsion is formed (thus giving a foamy head). Its
activity and potency in open-field tests with mice are similar to mescaline:
decreased activity without sedation, and no loss of righting reflex. Doses of up
to 100mg/kg were tested in mice, although the method of administration was later
found to be highly inefficient. It is active in humans at 200-500 micrograms,
and is thus many times more potent than any other plant-based hallucinogen.
Doses of 1000mg/kg in mice did not produce fatalities (this is 5000 times the
effective dose for humans!)
Salvia 20x A may be extracted from fresh or dried leaves (dried leaves are
probably easier). Valdas et al. successfully isolated salvinorin A:
After extracting the dried leaves with ether in a Soxhlet apparatus and
partitioning the extract between hexane and aqueous methanol, one has a fraction
that is almost 10% salvia 20x A by weight when dried. This procedure is so
effective at concentrating the diterpene that the crude compound often
precipitates out of the aqueous methanol solution before being subjected to
chromatography. Ether is used to extract the plant material because it has a low
boiling point, but chloroform or methylene chloride will serve as well for this
initial extraction. Chromatography is used for final purification of the
compound because it is faster and gives higher yields than repeated
recrystallization of the precipitate.
One kilogram of dried leaves produces about 1 gram of salvia 20x A (about
2000 doses).
When smoked, salvinorin A is vaporized. Any vaporization pipe should work
quite well. In all the reports that I could find, the salvinorin A was placed
onto a piece of aluminum foil and heated, and the vapors inhaled through a glass
pipe.
Nobody knows exactly how salvorin A works. There are four general classes of
hallucinogens, which all tend to act differently (q.v.). The very high
pharmacological index (i.e., the ratio of lethal to effective dose) and lack of
pupil dilation rule out the anticholinergics, which have a very low index (and
are thus very dangerous) and dilate the pupils. The lack of significant
"stoning" activity probably rules out anandimidics. This leaves two classes: 5HT
and NMDA/Sigma.
The nature of the hallucinatory experiences tend, to point away from the 5HT
class. salvia 20x A induces hallucinations that are not only believable, but
often fully believed by the user. Furthermore, salvinorin A hallucinations tend
to occur only in darkness and silence, unlike the 5HT class. However, it is
entirely possible that salvinorin A may have some 5HT hallucinatory activity.
The NMDA/sigma class shares a lot in common with salvinorin A. The
hallucinations tend to be eidetic at lower doses, i.e., more like vivid
imagination than true hallucinations. Like salvinorin A, NMDA/sigma agents tend
to be more hallucinatory in the dark and in silence. The synchronization of
experiences among people who share their experiences as they have them is also a
feature that has been identified in NMDA/sigma hallucinogens. The general nature
of the hallucinations is also consistent with NMDA/sigma agents. Interestingly,
salvinorin A does not seem to produce significant dissociative effects. Thus if
it is a NMDA/sigma agent, it is probably much more potent at sigma receptors
than NMDA.
We may have come across the very first natural NMDA/sigma hallucinogen. If
so, its lack of dissociative effects could lead to significant improvements in
our understanding of the psychophysiology of sigma receptors.
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