Ceiba pentandra - Wikipedia (kapok) and on the page it briefly mentions it is sometimes used in Ayahuasca recipes. anyone have any more information?
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Kapok tree - Ceiba pentandra - An ayahuasca admixture?
- Thread starter no1joe
- Start date
Morris Crowley
Rising Star
First, I'd like to heartily recommend you check out this guide to researching plants. May I ask why you chose to ask others to find the information before searching yourself? At any rate, some bits to get the thread rolling:
Looks like this information comes from the fieldwork of Luis Eduardo Luna, who indicates this species is used as an ayahuasca additive under the name "lupuna".
Luna. 1984. The concept of plants as teachers among four mestizo shamans of iquitos, Northeastern Peru. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0378874184900369
Also
Dennis J. McKenna, L. E. Luna, & G. H. N. Towers, (1986) Ingredientes biodinamicos en las plantas que se meszclan al ayahausca. Una farmacopea tradicional no investigada. America Indigena, 46:73-101.
But in 1986, Luna instead identifies lupuna as Chorisia speciosa. Presumably in Vegetalismo: Shamanism among the Mestizo Population of the Peruvian Amazon (I didn't double check; for more, see this summary from Bia Labate).
Looks like this information comes from the fieldwork of Luis Eduardo Luna, who indicates this species is used as an ayahuasca additive under the name "lupuna".
Luna. 1984. The concept of plants as teachers among four mestizo shamans of iquitos, Northeastern Peru. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0378874184900369
Also
Dennis J. McKenna, L. E. Luna, & G. H. N. Towers, (1986) Ingredientes biodinamicos en las plantas que se meszclan al ayahausca. Una farmacopea tradicional no investigada. America Indigena, 46:73-101.
But in 1986, Luna instead identifies lupuna as Chorisia speciosa. Presumably in Vegetalismo: Shamanism among the Mestizo Population of the Peruvian Amazon (I didn't double check; for more, see this summary from Bia Labate).
Morris Crowley
Rising Star
So is Callaeum antifebrile---an ayahuasca admixture plant that contains harmalas. Lack of study doesn't imply lack of interesting activity. Did you turn up any chemical analysis of the plant?
It should be noted that Luna 1984 (referenced above) indicates the identification of lupuna as Ceiba pentandra was based on "Personal communication and tentative plant identification by botanists at the Herbarium Amazonense, Iquitos". So maybe that was in error? But Steve Beyer, an expert on mestizo ayahuasca practices, identifies lupuna as Ceiba pentandra in this blog post discussing another tree---Cavanillesia umbellata---known as "red lupuna", used to perform (as well as to heal) powerful brujeria.
It should be noted that Luna 1984 (referenced above) indicates the identification of lupuna as Ceiba pentandra was based on "Personal communication and tentative plant identification by botanists at the Herbarium Amazonense, Iquitos". So maybe that was in error? But Steve Beyer, an expert on mestizo ayahuasca practices, identifies lupuna as Ceiba pentandra in this blog post discussing another tree---Cavanillesia umbellata---known as "red lupuna", used to perform (as well as to heal) powerful brujeria.
anything stick out for you?
Anti-inflammatory activity of petroleum ether and ethanolic extract of C. pentandra seeds revealed its traditional claim. This plant has long been used for its anti-inflammatory activity but work on seed extracts lacked a scientific support. The results of present study reveal the anti-inflammatory activity of tested extracts in acute phase of inflammation. Carrageenan induced rat paw edema is a suitable test for evaluating anti-inflammatory drugs and has frequently been used to assess the anti-edematus effects of natural products [18].
Anti-inflammatory Activity
Three isoflavone glucoside: vavain 3c-O-E-dglucoside (1) and its aglycon, vavain (2), and flavan-3-ol
(+)-catechin, isolated from the bark of Ceiba pentandra, exhibited IC50 values of 381, 97,
and 80 PM on inhibition of cyclooxygenase-1-catalyzed prostaglandin biosynthesis (Noreen et al.
1998). When further tested for their inhibitory effects on cyclooxygenase-2-catalyzed prostaglandin
biosynthesis, compounds 1 and 2 were found to be inactive (IC50 > 1,200 and > 900 PM, respectively).
From the 80% EtOH extract of the bark of Ceiba pentandra, a new isoflavone glycoside, 5-hydroxy-7,4c,5c-trimethoxyisoflavone 3c-O-D-Larabinofuranosyl (1.RAR.6-E-D-glucopyranoside) was isolated along with known isoflavones, vavain and vavain glucoside (Ueda et al. 2002).
Author: Lim, T. K.
Book: Medicinal and Non-medicinal Edible Plants, Vol. 1
Publisher: Springer Netherlands
ISBN: 90-481-8660-9, 978-90-481-8660-0
Date: 01/01/2012
Page: 540-549
DOI: 10.1007/978-90-481-8661-7_72
For the study of acute toxicity, the methanol extract of roots of C. pentandra (MCP) was given separately in various doses (50, 500, 1000, 2000 mg/kg) by oral route. The results showed no signs of toxicity such as general behavior change, mortality, or change in gross appearance of internal organs. Subacute toxicity was studied by daily oral doses 100, 400 and 750 mg/kg (low dose, intermediate dose and high dose) orally for 28 days. The results showed no abnormalities in treated groups as compared to the controls. Although significantly different, all of the values were within normal limits. Neither gross abnormalities nor histopathological changes were observed.
© 2013 JSR Publications. ISSN: 2070-0237 (Print); 2070-0245 (Online). All rights reserved.
doi: Acute and Subacute Toxicity Study of Methanolic Extract of <i>ceiba pentandra</i> (Linn.) Gaertn. on Rats | Journal of Scientific Research J. Sci. Res. 5 (2), 315-324 (2013)
Anti-inflammatory activity of petroleum ether and ethanolic extract of C. pentandra seeds revealed its traditional claim. This plant has long been used for its anti-inflammatory activity but work on seed extracts lacked a scientific support. The results of present study reveal the anti-inflammatory activity of tested extracts in acute phase of inflammation. Carrageenan induced rat paw edema is a suitable test for evaluating anti-inflammatory drugs and has frequently been used to assess the anti-edematus effects of natural products [18].
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY OF CEIBA PENTANDRA L. SEED EXTRACTS
Alagawadi, K R; Shah, A SView Profile. Journal of Cell and Tissue Research11.2 (2011): 2781-2784.
Similarly, the volatile oil of Ceiba pentandra L. flowers was found to contain isoprenoids including: monoterpene hydrocarbons (34%) [e.g. α-pinene (7.1%), β-pinene (3.4%), sabinene (20.8%), α-phellandrene
(0.9%), limonene (0.7%), p-cymene (1.2%)], oxygenated monoterpenes (8.4%) [e.g. 1,8-cineole (5.3%),
trans-sabinene hydrate (1%), cis-sabinene hydrate (0.6%), terpinen-4-ol (0.5%), verbenone (0.9%)], and
sesquiterpene hydrocarbons (26.9%) [e.g. α-copaene (5.5%), (E,E)-α-farnesene (20.3%)], fatty acid derivatives (18.1%) including: [3-pentanol (1%), 1-penten-3-ol (0.5%), 2-hexenal (8.9%), (Z)-3-hexenol (1.1%), 1-octen-3-ol (4.1%), pentanoic acid (2.5%)], benzenoids (7.8%) including: [benzaldehyde (1.9%), methyl benzoate (1.6%), 1-methoxy-4-(2-propenyl)-benzene (0.4%), methyl salicylate (1.8%), benzyl alcohol (1.8%), 2-phenyl ethanol (0.3%), 4-methoxy benzaldehyde (0.4%)], and miscellaneous compounds (2%) [e.g. 5-ethyl-2(5H)- furanone (2%)]. On the other hand, the oil was free from sulphur and nitrogen-containing compounds (Pettersson et al., 2004)
Pharmaceutical Biology, 2013; 51(1): 100–130© 2013 Informa Healthcare USA, Inc.
ISSN 1388-0209 print/ISSN 1744-5116 online DOI: 10.3109/13880209.2012.698286
Anti-inflammatory activity of petroleum ether and ethanolic extract of C. pentandra seeds revealed its traditional claim. This plant has long been used for its anti-inflammatory activity but work on seed extracts lacked a scientific support. The results of present study reveal the anti-inflammatory activity of tested extracts in acute phase of inflammation. Carrageenan induced rat paw edema is a suitable test for evaluating anti-inflammatory drugs and has frequently been used to assess the anti-edematus effects of natural products [18].
Anti-inflammatory Activity
Three isoflavone glucoside: vavain 3c-O-E-dglucoside (1) and its aglycon, vavain (2), and flavan-3-ol
(+)-catechin, isolated from the bark of Ceiba pentandra, exhibited IC50 values of 381, 97,
and 80 PM on inhibition of cyclooxygenase-1-catalyzed prostaglandin biosynthesis (Noreen et al.
1998). When further tested for their inhibitory effects on cyclooxygenase-2-catalyzed prostaglandin
biosynthesis, compounds 1 and 2 were found to be inactive (IC50 > 1,200 and > 900 PM, respectively).
From the 80% EtOH extract of the bark of Ceiba pentandra, a new isoflavone glycoside, 5-hydroxy-7,4c,5c-trimethoxyisoflavone 3c-O-D-Larabinofuranosyl (1.RAR.6-E-D-glucopyranoside) was isolated along with known isoflavones, vavain and vavain glucoside (Ueda et al. 2002).
Author: Lim, T. K.
Book: Medicinal and Non-medicinal Edible Plants, Vol. 1
Publisher: Springer Netherlands
ISBN: 90-481-8660-9, 978-90-481-8660-0
Date: 01/01/2012
Page: 540-549
DOI: 10.1007/978-90-481-8661-7_72
For the study of acute toxicity, the methanol extract of roots of C. pentandra (MCP) was given separately in various doses (50, 500, 1000, 2000 mg/kg) by oral route. The results showed no signs of toxicity such as general behavior change, mortality, or change in gross appearance of internal organs. Subacute toxicity was studied by daily oral doses 100, 400 and 750 mg/kg (low dose, intermediate dose and high dose) orally for 28 days. The results showed no abnormalities in treated groups as compared to the controls. Although significantly different, all of the values were within normal limits. Neither gross abnormalities nor histopathological changes were observed.
© 2013 JSR Publications. ISSN: 2070-0237 (Print); 2070-0245 (Online). All rights reserved.
doi: Acute and Subacute Toxicity Study of Methanolic Extract of <i>ceiba pentandra</i> (Linn.) Gaertn. on Rats | Journal of Scientific Research J. Sci. Res. 5 (2), 315-324 (2013)
Anti-inflammatory activity of petroleum ether and ethanolic extract of C. pentandra seeds revealed its traditional claim. This plant has long been used for its anti-inflammatory activity but work on seed extracts lacked a scientific support. The results of present study reveal the anti-inflammatory activity of tested extracts in acute phase of inflammation. Carrageenan induced rat paw edema is a suitable test for evaluating anti-inflammatory drugs and has frequently been used to assess the anti-edematus effects of natural products [18].
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY OF CEIBA PENTANDRA L. SEED EXTRACTS
Alagawadi, K R; Shah, A SView Profile. Journal of Cell and Tissue Research11.2 (2011): 2781-2784.
Similarly, the volatile oil of Ceiba pentandra L. flowers was found to contain isoprenoids including: monoterpene hydrocarbons (34%) [e.g. α-pinene (7.1%), β-pinene (3.4%), sabinene (20.8%), α-phellandrene
(0.9%), limonene (0.7%), p-cymene (1.2%)], oxygenated monoterpenes (8.4%) [e.g. 1,8-cineole (5.3%),
trans-sabinene hydrate (1%), cis-sabinene hydrate (0.6%), terpinen-4-ol (0.5%), verbenone (0.9%)], and
sesquiterpene hydrocarbons (26.9%) [e.g. α-copaene (5.5%), (E,E)-α-farnesene (20.3%)], fatty acid derivatives (18.1%) including: [3-pentanol (1%), 1-penten-3-ol (0.5%), 2-hexenal (8.9%), (Z)-3-hexenol (1.1%), 1-octen-3-ol (4.1%), pentanoic acid (2.5%)], benzenoids (7.8%) including: [benzaldehyde (1.9%), methyl benzoate (1.6%), 1-methoxy-4-(2-propenyl)-benzene (0.4%), methyl salicylate (1.8%), benzyl alcohol (1.8%), 2-phenyl ethanol (0.3%), 4-methoxy benzaldehyde (0.4%)], and miscellaneous compounds (2%) [e.g. 5-ethyl-2(5H)- furanone (2%)]. On the other hand, the oil was free from sulphur and nitrogen-containing compounds (Pettersson et al., 2004)
Pharmaceutical Biology, 2013; 51(1): 100–130© 2013 Informa Healthcare USA, Inc.
ISSN 1388-0209 print/ISSN 1744-5116 online DOI: 10.3109/13880209.2012.698286
Morris Crowley
Rising Star
Hmm, nothing there really sticks out. You're right, if it is active, flavonoids are the most likely suspects. Or, as you suggested, it could be a non-psychoactive medicinal admixture plant.
The Ott reference is Jonathan Ott. The date threw me off though; his most recent book was published in 2001. But it looks like his book Ayahuasca Analogues (published in English in 1994) saw a Spanish language edition published 2006.
The Ott reference is Jonathan Ott. The date threw me off though; his most recent book was published in 2001. But it looks like his book Ayahuasca Analogues (published in English in 1994) saw a Spanish language edition published 2006.
Morris Crowley
Rising Star
Just pulled out Ayahuasca Analogues to see what's there. Looks like Ott just included Ceiba pentandra in a large table of reported ayahuasca "additive plants". He cites the Luna 1984 article we've already touched on, but otherwise makes no further comment. In a footnote to the table, he says "[...] some additives appear to be therapeutic [citing Luna 1984, among other sources] and probably do not exert psychoactive effects. Many of the plants listed here are unknown chemically and the rationale for their use in ayahuasca is obscure."
It looks like Labate et al. were citing Ott to point out that at least five members of the family Bombacaceae (including C. pentandra) have been reported as ayahuasca admixtures. The family Bombacaceae is now considered obsolete, and most of its members (again including C. pentandra) have been transferred to Malvaceae. The other members of this family listed by Ott as ayahuasca additive plants are:
Also, I just checked Luna 1986 (scribd link). It looks as though Luna changed his mind about lupuna and decided it referred to Chorisia speciosa [=Ceiba speciosa]. He has this to say: "A very strong doctor. If one does not follow the diet, it is like catahua [=Hura crepitans]: it might kill you. Some vegetalistas consider this spirit of this tree an evil sorcerer. It is also associated with rain." Wikipedia mentions that C. speciosa is sometimes called "palo borracho" ("drunken" stick); the name is suggestive, but there's no citation where that information comes from.
So it looks like Ceiba pentandra may have been dragged into the lupuna discussion due to a misidentification. Right genus, wrong species. Ceiba speciosa is probably the more interesting one to look at. But considering Luna's warning ("it might kill you"), one would do well to tread lightly.
It looks like Labate et al. were citing Ott to point out that at least five members of the family Bombacaceae (including C. pentandra) have been reported as ayahuasca admixtures. The family Bombacaceae is now considered obsolete, and most of its members (again including C. pentandra) have been transferred to Malvaceae. The other members of this family listed by Ott as ayahuasca additive plants are:
- Cavanillesia hylogeiton Ulbr.
- Cavanillesia umbellata Ruiz & Pav. [This is the "red lupuna" discussed by Beyer]
- Chorisia insignis Kunth [a synonym; current accepted name is Ceiba insignis (Kunth) P.E.Gibbs & Semir]
- Chorisia speciosa A.St.-Hil. [a synonym; current accepted name is Ceiba speciosa (A.St.-Hil.) Ravenna]
- Quararibea "ishpingo" [Not an accepted name. Species unknown. Used in Peru]
Also, I just checked Luna 1986 (scribd link). It looks as though Luna changed his mind about lupuna and decided it referred to Chorisia speciosa [=Ceiba speciosa]. He has this to say: "A very strong doctor. If one does not follow the diet, it is like catahua [=Hura crepitans]: it might kill you. Some vegetalistas consider this spirit of this tree an evil sorcerer. It is also associated with rain." Wikipedia mentions that C. speciosa is sometimes called "palo borracho" ("drunken" stick); the name is suggestive, but there's no citation where that information comes from.
So it looks like Ceiba pentandra may have been dragged into the lupuna discussion due to a misidentification. Right genus, wrong species. Ceiba speciosa is probably the more interesting one to look at. But considering Luna's warning ("it might kill you"), one would do well to tread lightly.