Lack of effect of sublingual salvinorin A, a naturally occurring kappa opioid, in humans: a placebo-controlled trial.
Psychopharmacology April 1, 2011 John E Mendelson, Jeremy R Coyle, Juan Carlos Lopez et al. 40 citations
Salvinorin A (SA), the psychoactive compound in the hallucinogenic plant Salvia divinorum, was administered sublingually at doses up to 4 mg to eight experienced users in a placebo-controlled ascending-dose study. No dose produced significantly greater physiological or subjective effects than placebo, and the effects did not resemble those of smoked Salvia divinorum. SA was detectable in plasma and urine but mostly below the reliable quantification limit of 0.5 ng/mL. The results suggest that sublingual bioavailability of SA is low, indicating that higher doses, alternate formulations, or other routes of administration are needed to study its effects in humans.