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. Chem Pharm Bull (Tokyo). 2007 Mar;55(3):442-5. doi: 10.1248/cpb.55.442. Glutathione S-transferase inhibiting chemical constituents of Caesalpinia bonduc. Udenigwe CC(1), Ata A, Samarasekera R. Author information: (1)Department of Chemistry, The University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Glutathione S-transferase inhibition assay-guided fractionations on the ethanolic extract of the bark of Caesalpinia bonduc resulted in the isolation of a new sterol, 17-hydroxy-campesta-4,6-dien-3-one (1) along with four known compounds, 13,14-seco-stigmasta-5,14-dien-3alpha-ol (2), 13,14-seco-stigmasta-9(11),14-dien-3alpha-ol (3), caesaldekarin J (4) and pipataline (5) as active constituents. Structures of compounds 1-5 were established on the basis of extensive NMR spectroscopic studies. The compounds (1-5) were isolated on the basis of their inhibitory activity against glutathione S-transferase, an enzyme that has been implicated in resistances during treatment of cancer and parasitic infections. Efforts to study structure-activity relationships of compounds 2 and 3 were also made by modifying their structures. The IC50 values of these compounds and their derivatives ranged from 57-380 microM and were compared to the inhibitory effects due to sodium taurocholate, an isoprene-derived GST inhibitor (IC50=398 microM). A plausible biosynthesis of 13,14-seco-steroids has also been proposed. DOI: 10.1248/cpb.55.442 PMID: 17329887 [Indexed for MEDLINE] 2. J Ethnopharmacol. 2006 Dec 6;108(3):445-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2006.06.004. Epub 2006 Jun 23. HPLC assisted chemobiological standardization of alpha-glucosidase-I enzyme inhibitory constituents from Piper longum Linn-An Indian medicinal plant. Pullela SV(1), Tiwari AK, Vanka US, Vummenthula A, Tatipaka HB, Dasari KR, Khan IA, Janaswamy MR. Author information: (1)Natural Products Laboratory, Organic Division-I, Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad-500 007, India. Formulations of traditional medicines are usually made up of complex mixture of herbs. However, effective quality control methods in order to select right quality materials are lacking. Though Piper longum is a widely used herb in several Ayurvedic formulations prescribed for various diseases, there is no analytical method in the literature so far which can help in selecting the right quality material with proper proportions of the active ingredients (alpha-glucosidase-I enzyme inhibitory principles). We employed a systematic bioassay guided fractionation method and isolated pipataline, pellitorine, sesamin, brachystamide B and guineensine as active principles. A reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography method was developed to quantify these active principles in the plant material, which can serve as an effective quality control tool. The separation was carried out using a Discovery HS F5 C-18 (ODS) column and the solvent system used was a gradient comprising of (A) acetonitrile and (B) water with a flow rate of 1 ml/min. The detection was performed using a PDA detector. Regression equation pertaining to all the bioactive isolates revealed a linear relationship (r2 > 0.9995). The detection limits (S/N = 3) ranged from 0.005 to 0.001 microg/ml. Of all the active isolates, sesamin was identified to be present in maximum quantities (0.91%) where as brachystamide B was found in minimum quantity (0.01%). DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2006.06.004 PMID: 16872768 [Indexed for MEDLINE] 3. J Ethnopharmacol. 2001 May;75(2-3):133-9. doi: 10.1016/s0378-8741(00)00397-4. Constituents of Chinese Piper species and their inhibitory activity on prostaglandin and leukotriene biosynthesis in vitro. Stöhr JR(1), Xiao PG, Bauer R. Author information: (1)Institut für Pharmazeutische Biologie der Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Universitätsstrasse 1, D-40225, Düsseldorf, Germany. The n-hexane extracts of 19 Piper species, predominantly from China, were screened for their 5-lipoxygenase (5-LOX) and cyclooxygenase-1 (COX-1) inhibitory potential. Many of them showed considerable inhibitory activity against at least one of these two key enzymes of the arachidonic acid metabolism, especially against COX-1. The best results in inhibiting the formation of leukotrienes were obtained with the extract of Piper kadsura. In the terms of prostaglandin synthesis inhibition, the extract of Piper boehmeriifolium var. tonkinense was found to have the strongest activity. Furthermore, an analytical investigation by means of TLC, HPLC-DAD and GC-MS resulted in the identification of 20 constituents. Most of them were amides with an interesting variety of amine moieties. Among them were pellitorine, and four higher homologues, piperlonguminine, dihydropiperlonguminine, futoamide, chingchengenamide, the retrofractamides A, B and D, guineensine, brachystamide B, piperanine, piperine, piperdardine, sarmentine, pipataline and benzylbenzoate. In 96 cases, these constituents were new for the particular plant. DOI: 10.1016/s0378-8741(00)00397-4 PMID: 11297843 [Indexed for MEDLINE]