A presentation by:
Gabriel Garcia
Caillie Lawrie
Jennifer Vanderhoof
History and Background
•
First found in modern times in the woody plant
Brugmansia, which was discovered by Carl Linnaeus
in 1753 in South America.
•
In 1819 Meissner discovered that the active
ingredients of these poisonous plants are
alkaline and could be isolated by extraction
techniques.
•
Scopolamine has been used by many South
American indigenous cultures in medical,
and ritualistic practices for centuries.
Plant Information
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Brugmansia is a small tree with long horn
shaped flowers and small round seed
pods.
•
All parts of the Brugmansia are poisonous,
especally the seeds and leaves.
•
It's related to Datura, commonly call
Angel's Trumpet or Moonflowers, which
can be found throughout the United States
and Mexico.
Plant Information
•
Scopolamine is a secondary metabolite
from the plant Brugmansia.
•
Scopolamine is a type of tropane
alkaloid. These alkaloids are what give
scopolamine its toxic effect.
•
Ingestion can cause an array of
symptoms such as confusion, visual and
auditory hallucinations, smooth muscle
paralysis, and death.
•
Common names include Scopolamine,
scopa, Colombian devil's breath, levoduboisine,
Plant Information
•
Christina Pratt, the author of An
Encyclopedia of Shamanism said,
"These hallucinations are often
characterized by complete loss of
awareness that one is hallucinating,
disconnection from reality, and amnesia
of the episode.”
•
As stated before, these symptoms
resulted from drinking a cup of tea made
from Brugmansia.
Biosynthesis of Scopolomine
•
Synthesis of scopolamine in Brugmansia begins with
the amino acid ornthithine.
•
The mechanism of synthesis is not fully
understood.
•
Evolutionary theory for the synthesis
of such a toxin include evolving a line
of defense on behalf of the plant
against larvae and herbivores.
Biosynthesis of Scopolomine
Mechanism:
Medical Uses
•
In the past 100 years, it was used to treat addiction
to drugs like heroin and cocaine.
•
2006 studies showed that Scopolamine
reduced the symptoms of depression and
its effects lasted for several days after use.
•
It's commonly used by fishermen and scuba
divers for its effectiveness against motion
sickness. Chemotherapy patients also use
it to deal with nausea associated with their
chemptherapy
Medical Uses
•
Scopolamine was mixed with morphine to produce
and effect called "twilight sleep." It was given to
women in labor to reduce pain but maintain
consciousness.
•
It has been tested as a topical treatment
for various skin diseases, such as
Aquagenic pruritus.
Recreational Uses
•
Scopolamine was used by early South American
tribes for religious ceremonies as well as a tool for
communication with their ancestors.
•
In some South American cultures it was
given to wives and slaves before they
were buried alive with their dead lords.
•
During the Medieval Times, it was used as
a poison in sorcery and black magic. In
addion, magicians used it for prophecy.
Administration
•
In medical settings, Scopolamine is administered orally,
subcutaneously, opthalmically, intravenously, or by a
transdermal patch.
•
When used for criminal purposes, it is typically
used in a powdered form and is accidentally
inhaled by an unsuspecting victim.
.
Site of Action
•
Scopolamine has great effects on
the Central Nervous system due to
its ability to cross the blood brain
barrier.
•
Scopolomine has muscarinic
antagonist effects: it reduces the
activity of a neurotransmitter
called the muscarinic acetylcholine
receptor. This neurotransmitter
has a large effect on the
parasympathetic nervous system.
Site of Action
Possible sites for the mechanism of memory impairment:
• Dorsal hippocampus
 site of NMDA receptor
 amnesia can be induced when hippocampus
is exposed to scopolomine
•
Intra-medial septum (MS)
 responsible for inducing amnesia
when scopolomine is directly injected
Site of Action
Possible sites for the mechanism of memory impairment
• NMDA receptor (a glutamate receptor)
 the NMDA receptor can increase
memory when stimulated

Scopolomine is a competitive
NMDA receptor antagonist
Targeted Receptors
Criminal Use
•
During the 1950's, the U.S. Military tested
scopolamine as a "truth serum" in project MKULTRA
for interrogative purposes.
•
Recently in criminal use, it has been used
as a date-rape drug because it causes
retrograde amnesia.
•
There have been many reports of the drug
used to induce a “zombie” state of mind
in which involuntarily submit to any authority.
Criminal Use
For additional information on the criminal use of scopolamine,
feel free to view the two-part documentary linked below (copy
and past the link).
•
Although these cases have not been officially reported, it is nevertheless
intriguing to know that such happenstances occur and that there may be
some truth behind the stories
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVth1OGEcM8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=fvwp&
NR=1&v=8rx1fhdtj8g
Citations:
•
•
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Bellows, A. (2005, December 22). The truth about truth
serum. Retrieved from http://www.damninteresting.com/thetruth-about-truth-serum/
Duffy, R. (2008, July 23). Colombian devil's breath part 1 &
2. Retrieved from http://www.vice.com/vice-news/colombiandevil-s-breath-1-of-2
Multum, C. (2010, December 15). Scopolamine. Retrieved
from http://www.drugs.com/mtm/scopolamine.html
Citations:
•
•
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Fatemeh Khakpai, Mohammad Nasehi, Ali Haeri-Rohani,
Akram Eidi, Mohammad Reza Zarrindast (2012 May 16).
Scopolamine induced memory impairment; possible
involvement of NMDA receptor mechanisms of dorsal
hippocampus and/or septum. Retrieved from
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016643281
2001787
Pratt, C. (2007). An encyclopedia of shamanism. (1 ed., Vol.
1-2). New York, NY: The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc.
http://flipper.diff.org/app/items/info/4260