''Anadenanthera peregrina'', also known as yopo, jopo, cohoba, parica or calcium tree, is a perennial tree of the genus ''
Anadenanthera
''Anadenanthera'' is a genus of South American trees in the Legume family, Fabaceae. The genus contains two to four species, including '' A. colubrina'' and '' A. peregrina''. These trees respectively are known to the western world primarily a ...
'' native to the
Caribbean and
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...
.
It grows up to tall, and has a horny bark. Its flowers grow in small, pale yellow to white spherical clusters resembling Acacia (e.g. wattle) inflorescences. It is an
entheogen
Entheogens are psychoactive substances that induce alterations in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition, or behavior for the purposes of engendering spiritual development or otherwiseRätsch, Christian, ''The Encyclopedia of Psychoac ...
which has been used in healing ceremonies and
ritual
A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized ...
s for thousands of years in northern South America and the Caribbean. Although the seeds of the yopo tree were originally gathered from the wild, increased competition between tribes over access to the seeds led to it being intentionally cultivated and transported elsewhere, expanding the plant's distribution through introduction to areas beyond its original native range.
Related species
This plant is almost identical to that of a related tree, ''
Anadenanthera colubrina
''Anadenanthera colubrina'' (also known as vilca, huilco, huilca, wilco, willka, curupay, curupau, cebil, or angico) is a South American tree closely related to yopo, or ''Anadenanthera peregrina''. It grows to tall and the trunk is very thorn ...
'', commonly known as cebíl or vilca.
The beans of ''A. colubrina'' have a similar chemical makeup as ''Anadenanthera peregrina'', with their primary constituent being
bufotenin
Bufotenin (5-HO-DMT, bufotenine) is a tryptamine derivative - more specifically, a DMT derivative - related to the neurotransmitter serotonin. It is an alkaloid found in some species of toads (especially the skin), mushrooms and plants.
...
.
Botanical varieties
*
''Anadenanthera peregrina'' var. ''falcata''
*
''Anadenanthera peregrina'' var. ''peregrina''
Uses
Wood
The wood from ''A. peregrina'' produces very hard timber that is used for making
furniture. It has a
Janka rating of 3700 lb. and a density of around 0.86 g/cm
3. Tannins have also been derived from this plant.
Toxicity
The beans (sometimes called seeds) and falling leaves are hallucinogenic and are toxic to
cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...
.
Chemical compounds
Chemical compound
A chemical compound is a chemical substance composed of many identical molecules (or molecular entities) containing atoms from more than one chemical element held together by chemical bonds. A molecule consisting of atoms of only one element ...
s contained in ''A. peregrina'' include:
*
2,9-dimethyltryptoline – plant
[Dr. Duke's](_blank)
Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases
*
2-methyltryptoline – plant
*
5-MeO-DMT
5-MeO-DMT (5-methoxy-''N'',''N''-dimethyltryptamine) or O-methyl-bufotenin is a psychedelic of the tryptamine class. It is found in a wide variety of plant species, and also is secreted by the glands of at least one toad species, the Colorado R ...
– bark,
bean
* 5-Methoxy-''N''-methyltryptamine – bark
*
Bufotenin
Bufotenin (5-HO-DMT, bufotenine) is a tryptamine derivative - more specifically, a DMT derivative - related to the neurotransmitter serotonin. It is an alkaloid found in some species of toads (especially the skin), mushrooms and plants.
...
– plant
beans
*
Bufotenin
Bufotenin (5-HO-DMT, bufotenine) is a tryptamine derivative - more specifically, a DMT derivative - related to the neurotransmitter serotonin. It is an alkaloid found in some species of toads (especially the skin), mushrooms and plants.
...
-
oxide – fruit,
beans
*
Catechol
Catechol ( or ), also known as pyrocatechol or 1,2-dihydroxybenzene, is a toxic organic compound with the molecular formula . It is the ''ortho'' isomer of the three isomeric benzenediols. This colorless compound occurs naturally in trace amoun ...
– plant
*
Leucoanthocyanin – plant
* Leucopelargonidol – plant
*
DMT – fruit,
beans, pods,
bark
*
DMT-
oxide – fruit
*
N-Methyltryptamine
''N''-Methyltryptamine (NMT) is a member of the substituted tryptamine chemical class and a natural product which is biosynthesized in the human body from tryptamine by certain N-methyltransferase enzymes, such as indolethylamine ''N''-methyl ...
– bark
*
Orientin
Orientin is a flavone, a chemical flavonoid-like compound. It is the 8-C glucoside of luteolin.
Natural occurrences
Orientin is found in ''Adonis vernalis'', in '' Anadenanthera colubrina'' and ''Anadenanthera peregrina'', and in the '' Phyllost ...
– leaf
* Saponarentin – leaf
* Viterine – leaf
The bark contains a high percentage of
tannin
Tannins (or tannoids) are a class of astringent, polyphenolic biomolecules that bind to and precipitate proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids.
The term ''tannin'' (from Anglo-Norman ''tanner'' ...
s, 587 mg CE/g extract.
Entheogenic uses
Traditional usage
Archaeological evidence shows ''Anadenanthera'' beans have been used as
hallucinogens
Hallucinogens are a large, diverse class of psychoactive drugs that can produce altered states of consciousness characterized by major alterations in thought, mood, and perception as well as other changes. Most hallucinogens can be categorize ...
for thousands of years. The oldest clear evidence of use comes from pipes made of
puma bone (''Puma concolor'') found with ''Anadenanthera'' beans presumably of the sister species ''A. colubrina'', at Inca Cueva, a site in the
Humahuaca
Humahuaca () is a small city in the province of Jujuy, Argentina. Since 2003 declared World Heritage Site by UNESCO at the Paris conference.
It has 11,369 inhabitants as per the , and is the principal town (seat) of the Department of Humahuaca. T ...
gorge at the edge of the
Puna of
Jujuy Province
Jujuy is a province of Argentina, located in the extreme northwest of the country, at the borders with Chile and Bolivia. The only neighboring Argentine province is Salta to the east and south.
Geography
There are three main areas in Jujuy:
...
, Argentina. The pipes were found to contain the hallucinogen
DMT, one of the compounds found in ''Anadenanthera'' beans.
Radiocarbon
Carbon-14, C-14, or radiocarbon, is a radioactive isotope of carbon with an atomic nucleus containing 6 protons and 8 neutrons. Its presence in organic materials is the basis of the radiocarbon dating method pioneered by Willard Libby and c ...
testing of the material gave a date of 2130 BC, suggesting that ''Anadenanthera'' use as a hallucinogen is over 4,000 years old.
Snuff trays and tubes similar to those commonly used for yopo were found in the central Peruvian coast dating back to 1200 BC, suggesting that
insufflation
In religious and magical practice, insufflation and exsufflation are ritual acts of blowing, breathing, hissing, or puffing that signify variously expulsion or renunciation of evil or of the devil (the Evil One), or infilling or blessing with go ...
of ''Anadenanthera'' beans is a more recent method of use. Archaeological evidence of insufflation use within the period 500-1000 AD, in northern Chile, has been reported.
Some indigenous peoples of the
Orinoco basin in
Colombia,
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
and possibly in the southern part of the
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
ian
Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology
* Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin
* Amazon River, in South America
* Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...
make use of yopo snuff for spiritual healing. Yopo snuff was also widely used in ceremonial contexts in the
Caribbean area, including
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
and
La Española, up to the
Spanish Conquest
The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its predece ...
.
Yopo snuff is usually blown into the user's nostrils by another person through
bamboo
Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, ...
tubes or sometimes snuffed by the user using bird bone tubes. Blowing is more effective as this method allows more powder to enter the nose and is said to be less irritating. In some areas the unprocessed ground beans are snuffed or smoked producing a much weaker effect with stronger physical symptoms. Some tribes use yopo along with ''
Banisteriopsis caapi
''Banisteriopsis caapi'', also known as ayahuasca, caapi, soul vine, or yagé (yage), is a South American liana of the family Malpighiaceae. It is one half of ayahuasca, a decoction with a long history of its entheogenic (connecting to spirit) us ...
'' to increase and prolong the visionary effects, creating an experience similar to that of
ayahuasca
AyahuascaPronounced as in the UK and in the US. Also occasionally known in English as ''ayaguasca'' ( Spanish-derived), ''aioasca'' (Brazilian Portuguese-derived), or as ''yagé'', pronounced or . Etymologically, all forms but ''yagé'' desce ...
.
Effects
The first report of the effects of hallucinogenic snuff prepared from the beans of ''Anadenanthera peregrina'' dates back to 1496 when it was observed by Friar Ramon Pane, who was commissioned by Christopher Columbus, among the Taino Indians of Hispaniola. Pane's report was first published in 1511 in Martyr's descriptions of the New World. The description of its effects reads in part: "This ''kohobba'' powder," described as "an intoxicating herb, is so strong that those who take it lose consciousness; when the stupefying action begins to wane, the arms and legs become loose and the head droops." It is administered with a cane about one foot long of which they introduce one end "in the nose and the other in the powder and ...draw it into themselves through the nose". It worked quickly: "almost immediately they believe they see the room turn upside-down and men walking with their heads downwards". The administering witch-doctor took the drug along with his patients, intoxicating "them so that they do not know what they do and ... speak of many things incoherently", believing that they are in communication with spirits.
Active constituents
Bufotenin
The beans have been found to contain up to 7.4%
bufotenin
Bufotenin (5-HO-DMT, bufotenine) is a tryptamine derivative - more specifically, a DMT derivative - related to the neurotransmitter serotonin. It is an alkaloid found in some species of toads (especially the skin), mushrooms and plants.
...
.
[Pharmanopo-Psychonautics: Human Intranasal, Sublingual, Intrarectal, Pulmonary and Oral Pharmacology of Bufotenine](_blank)
by Jonathan Ott, The Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, September 2001 At up to 7.4% (74 mg per gram) bufotenin, an effective 40 mg dose of insufflated bufotenin
requires little more than 0.5 grams of beans.
The
intraperitoneal
The peritoneum is the serous membrane forming the lining of the abdominal cavity or coelom in amniotes and some invertebrates, such as annelids. It covers most of the intra-abdominal (or coelomic) organs, and is composed of a layer of mesothel ...
of bufotenin is between 200–300 mg/kg (in rodents) with death occurring by respiratory arrest. The LD
50 in rodents scales to between 10,000 mg and 15,000 mg for a small 50 kg (110 lb) adult.
Based on the intraperitoneal LD
50 for rodents, at 74 mg per gram, it would require approximately 135 grams of beans to reach the estimated LD
50of bufotenin for a 50 kg (110 lb) adult. Human intravenous tests using
bufotenin
Bufotenin (5-HO-DMT, bufotenine) is a tryptamine derivative - more specifically, a DMT derivative - related to the neurotransmitter serotonin. It is an alkaloid found in some species of toads (especially the skin), mushrooms and plants.
...
suggest the LD
50 may be much lower in humans with subjects showing signs of peripheral toxicity (purple face,
tachycardia
Tachycardia, also called tachyarrhythmia, is a heart rate that exceeds the normal resting rate. In general, a resting heart rate over 100 beats per minute is accepted as tachycardia in adults. Heart rates above the resting rate may be normal ( ...
, difficulty breathing, etc.) at doses as little as 8 mg in some subjects. Free base bufotenin when insufflated, taken sublingually, orally, or intrarectally, elicits strong hallucinogenic effects with far less side effects.
Dimethyltryptamine and 5-MeO-DMT
The beans have been found to contain up to only 0.04% 5-MeO-DMT and 0.16% DMT.
The leaves and bark also contain small amounts of DMT, 5-MeO-DMT and related compounds.
[Pachter et al. 1959 ]
At up to 0.04% (0.4 mg per gram) 5-MeO-DMT, an effective light 5 mg dose of insufflated 5-MeO-DMT would require over 12 grams of beans. It would be extremely difficult to insufflate such a quantity, as tolerance would likely develop before the 12-gram nasal intake could be completed. Individual sensitivity to 5-MeO-DMT varies. It has been documented that the threshold dose in some individuals is as much as 10 mg insufflated
[Shamanic Snuffs or Entheogenic Errhines by Jonathan Ott, Page 102, 2001, ] requiring over 24 grams of beans for an effective dose of 5-MeO-DMT.
At up to 0.16% (1.6 mg per gram) DMT, an effective 40 mg dose of insufflated DMT would require 25 grams or more. Because of its volume, it’s likely to be impossible to insufflate the 25 grams of beans required to reach the active dose of DMT present in the beans. An extract of 25 grams of beans could contain up to 1,850 mg of bufotenin, a potentially dangerous dose. With insufflated freebase bufotenin, the maximum published safe dose used has been 100 mg.
Unlike bufotenin, both DMT and 5-MeO-DMT are relatively unstable and begin to degrade rather quickly. Schultes and colleges (1977) examined a 120-year-old bean collection and found 0.6% bufotenin with no DMT or 5-MeO-DMT present at all. They also examined a batch of beans that contained all three compounds when fresh, but found only bufotenin in the beans after only two years of
storage.
Oral usage
When taken orally by some tribes in South America, small amounts are often combined with alcoholic ''chichas'' (
maize beer).
Moderate doses are unpleasant, producing nausea and vomiting. The beans were a main ingredient in bilca tauri, an oral purge medicine used to induce ritual vomiting once a month.
Large amounts are not usually consumed orally; as many tribes believe oral use is dangerous.
Use with MAOIs
Some South American tribes have been documented to use various bean preparations along with ''
Banisteriopsis caapi
''Banisteriopsis caapi'', also known as ayahuasca, caapi, soul vine, or yagé (yage), is a South American liana of the family Malpighiaceae. It is one half of ayahuasca, a decoction with a long history of its entheogenic (connecting to spirit) us ...
'', an herb containing
monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs).
Typically ''Banisteriopsis caapi'' is chewed in the mouth while the Anadenanthera beans are snuffed or smoked.
Occasionally ''Banisteriopsis caapi'' is found mixed in with the snuff.
See also
* ''
Anadenanthera colubrina
''Anadenanthera colubrina'' (also known as vilca, huilco, huilca, wilco, willka, curupay, curupau, cebil, or angico) is a South American tree closely related to yopo, or ''Anadenanthera peregrina''. It grows to tall and the trunk is very thorn ...
''
*
Cohoba
*
List of plants of Caatinga vegetation of Brazil
This is a list of plants found in the wild in Caatinga vegetation of Brazil.
Acanthaceae
* '' Anisacanthus'' '' brasiliensis'' Lindau
* '' Anisacanthus trilobus'' Lindau
* '' Lophostachys'' '' floribunda'' Ness
* ''Ruellia'' ''asperula'' Benth ...
*
Nu-nu
Nu-nu is a herbal stimulant used by the Matsés people of the Amazon to prepare the men for a successful hunt.
Recipe
To prepare the snuff, the powdered roasted leaves of mapacho (a variety of tobacco) are mixed with alkaline ashes of the inn ...
, a psychotropic snuff used by Matsés people
*
Psychedelic plants
Psychoactive plants are plants, or preparations thereof, that upon ingestion induce psychotropic effects. As stated in a reference work:
Psychoactivity may include sedative, stimulant, euphoric, deliriant, and hallucinogenic effects.
Several ...
References
Further reading
*
External links
Erowid Anadenanthera Vault
{{Taxonbar, from=Q150584
peregrina
Entheogens
Herbal and fungal hallucinogens
Psychedelic tryptamine carriers
Trees of Brazil
Trees of Colombia
Trees of the Dominican Republic
Trees of Venezuela
Trees of South America
Plants described in 1753
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus
Ayahuasca analogs
Taxa named by Carlo Luigi Spegazzini