Unconditioned behavioral effects of the powerful kappa-opioid hallucinogen salvinorin A in nonhuman primates: fast onset and entry into cerebrospinal fluid.
The Journal of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics February 1, 2009 Eduardo R Butelman, Thomas E Prisinzano, Haiteng Deng et al. 67 citations
Salvinorin A, the main active component of the hallucinogenic plant Salvia divinorum, produces rapid behavioral effects in nonhuman primates, including sedation and postural relaxation, similar to synthetic kappa-agonists. These effects occur within 1 to 2 minutes of intravenous injection and can be blocked by the opioid antagonist nalmefene. The drug enters the central nervous system within 1 minute at concentrations matching its affinity for brain kappa-receptors. This is the first systematic documentation of such rapid unconditioned effects in a primate species, consistent with human reports of the drug's fast and powerful effects.