Worldwide, there are plants known as psychoactive plants that naturally contain psychedelic active components. They have a high concentration of neuroprotective substances that can interact with the nervous system to produce psychedelic effects. Despite these plants' hazardous potential, recreational use of them is on the rise because of their psychoactive properties. Early neuroscience studies relied heavily on psychoactive plants and plant natural products (NPs), and both recreational and hazardous NPs have contributed significantly to the understanding of almost all neurotransmitter systems. Worldwide, there are many plants that contain psychoactive properties, and people have been using them for ages. Psychoactive plant compounds may significantly alter how people perceive the world.
1. Food Chem. 2016 Oct 15;209:262-6. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2016.04.071. Epub 2016 Apr 20. GC-MS evaluation of Cymbopogon citratus (DC) Stapf oil obtained using modified hydrodistillation and microwave extraction methods. Ajayi EO(1), Sadimenko AP(1), Afolayan AJ(2). Author information: (1)Department of Chemistry, University of Fort Hare, Alice 5700, South Africa. (2)MPED Research Centre, Department of Botany, University of Fort Hare, Alice 5700, South Africa. Electronic address: aafolayan@ufh.ac.za. Bioactive compounds of Cymbopogon citratus essential oil, using different media have been tentatively identified with the aid of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Hydrodistillation was complemented using weakly acidic and alkaline media for the oil extraction. Solvent-free microwave extraction (SFME) was also used. Analyses of the oils revealed the presence of 7, 16, 22, and 15 compounds in the water-distilled (WD), microwave-distilled (MD), acid-distilled (AD), and base-distilled (BD), essential oils, respectively. Total yield of the volatile fractions was 0.73%, 0.64%, 0.70%, and 0.45%, respectively. Citral was found to be the major component, the base extraction having the highest content. This was followed by 2-isopropenyl-5-methylhex-4-enal, p-cymene, and 2-thujene. The antimicrobial, antibacterial, and antioxidant activities and assessment of medicinal/nutritional uses of the essential oils are subjects of future studies. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd. DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2016.04.071 PMID: 27173561 [Indexed for MEDLINE]