Evolution and origins of the Mazatec hallucinogenic sage, Salvia divinorum (Lamiaceae): a molecular phylogenetic approach.

Salvia divinorum, a potent hallucinogenic plant used by the Mazatecs of Oaxaca, Mexico, is not a hybrid and should not be classified within the section Dusenostachys. DNA sequencing of multiple regions from 52 species and six accessions of S. divinorum shows its closest known relative is Salvia venulosa, a rare Colombian endemic. The plant's unique pharmacology as a highly selective κ-opioid receptor agonist underscores its ethnobotanical significance.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Salvia divinorum Epl. & Játiva-M. (Lamiaceae) is a potent hallucinogenic plant that is classified within Salvia subgenus Calosphace, section Dusenostachys, and hypothesized to be an interspecific hybrid. It is of ethnobotanical significance due to its employment in traditional healing ceremonies by the Mazatecs of Oaxaca, Mexico, and due to its unique pharmacology-a highly selective, non-nitrogenous, κ-opioid receptor agonist. In order to test its phylogenetic position and putative hybridity, we sequenced multiple DNA regions (ITS, trnL-trnF, and psbA-trnH) of 52 species-representing the major lineages of subgenus Calosphace-and six accessions of S. divinorum. Our molecular phylogenetic results suggest that S. divinorum should not be classified within Dusenostachys and that it is not a hybrid. Additionally, we determine that the closest known relative of this psychoactive Mexican sage is S. venulosa, a rare endemic of Colombia.