bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
Scott A. Ford, Rob W. Ness, Moonhyuk Kwon et al.
preprint
A chromosome-level genome assembly of the diviners sage plant, which produces the hallucinogen salvinorin A, has been produced. The genome is about 541 million base pairs, diploid, and comparable to other sage species. Two gene clusters involved in diterpene biosynthesis were identified, including a gene that forms the dihydrofuran ring early in the salvinorin A pathway. Other enzyme classes likely involved in later steps are scattered across the genome. Most of these genes are not activated by methyl jasmonate treatment. This high-quality genome sequence will help uncover the remaining steps in salvinorin A biosynthesis and support exploration of its medical potential for chronic pain, addiction, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
June 26, 2026
Spencer W. Wheeler, Jonathan Dinsmore, Natalie L. Dyer
preprint
Salvia divinorum is a unique psychedelic whose active compound, salvinorin A, acts on kappa opioid receptors. In an online survey of 321 participants about their most recent salvia experience, the average number of items endorsed on the Salvia Experience Checklist (SEC) was 16.5 out of 58, and the average Hallucinogen Rating Scale (HRS) score was 186.36. Scores on all HRS subscales correlated significantly with SEC scores. Exploratory factor analysis of the SEC yielded 10 factors, and content analysis identified 16 major themes. Higher SEC scores were associated with stronger extract potency and with smoking as the administration method. The findings help characterize salvia's phenomenology and support further development of the SEC.
SSP Modern Pharmacy and Medicine
May 25, 2026
Nadiia Kutsenko
Salvia divinorum and its active compound Salvinorin A pose high toxicological risk, rapid psychotropic action, and legal control difficulties. Their availability online and in informal markets, combined with a perception as natural products, challenges public health, forensic practice, and regulators. The rapid onset of effects, unpredictable behavioral reactions, and difficulty detecting use via routine toxicology increase their relevance for medico-pharmaceutical law and forensic pharmacy. Italy's experience and the new EUDA mandate show that effective counteraction requires legislative control, forensic pharmaceuticals, digital market monitoring, prevention, early-warning systems, public education, and health system preparedness. Cross-border distribution, internet promotion, and misleading marketing as harmless herbal products need attention. An integrated approach can reduce misuse, improve detection, and strengthen cooperation among healthcare, law enforcement, forensic experts, and regulators.
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
May 21, 2026
Elliot Allan
Traditional psychoactive plant ceremonies across 11 indigenous traditions on five continents show a near-perfect log–log correlation (r = 0.977) between ceremony duration and the pharmacokinetic duration of the active compounds, spanning seven pharmacological classes including DMT, mescaline, psilocybin, ergolines, salvinorin, ibogaine, and GABA-A-active compounds. A catalogue of 118 Amazonian admixture plants reveals that pharmacologically active species cluster at the extremes of purpose observability, while candidate plants concentrate in the middle. Agent-based simulations indicate that guided iterative search, not random trial-and-error, could realistically discover the DMT plus MAO-I combination within centuries to millennia in the Amazonian flora.
Journal of Psychopharmacology
April 16, 2026
Jesse J. Norris
1 citation
Using data from a large US survey (2014–2023, 544,740 respondents), the study examined links between rarely used drugs and criminal behavior. Phencyclidine (PCP) use was strongly associated with arrest for serious violent offenses, assault, and sex offenses, and with attacking three or more people. Gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) was linked to arrest for several offenses. Among psychedelics, psilocybin was associated with reduced odds of several offenses, while DMT/AMT/Foxy and peyote were linked to increased odds. LSD and Salvia divinorum showed mixed associations. Protective effects of psychedelics were largely absent for minors and were stronger for whites than for minorities. The mixed findings highlight the need for further research on causal connections between psychedelics and crime.
Drug and alcohol dependence reports
March 1, 2026
Jing-Jer Chen, Carla J Berg, Y Tony Yang
1 citation
From 2021 to 2023, overall hallucinogen use among Americans aged 12 and older remained stable at about 2.8%, but trends for individual substances diverged. LSD use declined from 0.88% to 0.58%, while ketamine use increased from 1.61% to 1.91%. Use of ecstasy/MDMA and tryptamines (including DMT) stayed steady, and PCP and Salvia divinorum remained rare. Hallucinogen use was concentrated among young adults and males, with higher odds among uninsured individuals and those below the federal poverty level. Substance-specific monitoring may better inform screening, prevention, and harm-reduction efforts than aggregate hallucinogen indicators.
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
February 23, 2026
Flemming Bust
Depersonalization and derealization (DP/DR) may result from a predictable two-stage autonomic shutdown sequence in people with disorganized attachment histories. Stage 1 involves loss of bodily awareness due to reduced anterior insula activity, shifting consciousness into excessive prefrontal cortex cognition. Stage 2 occurs when prefrontal processing is overwhelmed, triggering a dorsal vagal shutdown mediated by the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray and flooding of dynorphin/kappa-opioid receptors, producing the experience of depersonalization and derealization. The model proposes chronic depletion of the endocannabinoid anandamide as the missing link, removing a buffer that normally prevents this shutdown. Evidence includes drug-induced dissociation and opioid-receptor blocker reversal studies.
Biomedicines
February 21, 2026
Maximiliano Ganado, Carmen Rubio, Javier Pérez-villavicencio et al.
Psychedelic effects are not solely driven by serotonin receptors. The compound salvinorin A, from Salvia divinorum, produces altered consciousness by directly activating kappa opioid receptors (KORs), bypassing serotonin entirely. This review synthesizes evidence from lab studies, animal models, and human brain imaging. Salvinorin A triggers a specific signaling pathway (β-arrestin bias) that causes rapid receptor desensitization, disrupts thalamocortical communication, suppresses dopamine activity in reward circuits, and fragments large-scale brain networks. Despite being a potent opioid agonist, it has low abuse potential because its aversive effects and dopamine suppression prevent positive reinforcement. Understanding opioid receptor mechanisms expands psychedelic neuroscience beyond serotonin-focused models and may guide development of treatments for depression, addiction, and chronic pain.
Religions
January 24, 2026
Zhiping Yu
In early Chinese religion, celestial deities, earthly spirits, and ghosts were devoutly worshipped. Oracle bone inscriptions record rituals for rain, temple worship, and river deities under terms like “fang.” The Supreme God was the paramount deity of the Shang Dynasty, merging with ancestral spirits by the early Zhou. The hexagram of Contemplation (guan gua) depicts shamans or ritual hosts performing temple sacrifices, emphasizing sincere human–Heaven communication. A monarch’s guan ritual embodies inner sincerity, prompting celestial trust, forming an interactive relationship. The hexagram’s structure highlights deities’ transcendence and humans’ reverence. Sages established religion for human life but not as leaders. From Shang through Spring and Autumn, Chinese spirituality shifted from shamanism to ritual propriety and from theistic to humanistic culture, shaping subsequent 2500 years. Confucius replaced shamanistic elements with moral experience.
Farmacja Polska
December 30, 2025
Ewa Niedzielska-Andres, Angelika Ziaja, Stanisław Zielinski et al.
Natural hallucinogens such as psilocybin, ayahuasca, ibogaine, and mescaline show therapeutic potential for treatment-resistant depression, PTSD, existential anxiety, and substance addictions. Psilocybin has the best-documented evidence, with controlled trials indicating rapid and lasting improvement in treatment-resistant depression, reduction of existential anxiety, easing of obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and support for addiction therapy, alongside a favorable safety profile. Ayahuasca exhibits antidepressant and anxiolytic effects and potential in addiction treatment. Ibogaine reduces withdrawal and drug craving in opioid addiction and PTSD symptoms in war veterans but requires caution due to cardiotoxic side effects.