Mescaline

Mescaline (3,4,5-trimethoxyphenethylamine) is a hallucinogenic alkaloid of the phenethylamine class.

It occurs naturally in the peyote cactus (Lophophora williamsii), the San Pedro cactus (Echinopsis pachanoi) and the Peruvian Torch cactus (Echinopsis peruviana), and it is also found in a number of other members of the Cactaceae. It can be extracted from these sources. Mescaline was first isolated and identified in 1897 by the German Arthur Heffter and first synthesized in 1919 by Ernst Späth.

Usage and history


The use of extract from peyote in Native American religious ceremonies has been noted since the earliest European contact, notably by the Huichols in Mexico.

Dosage and effects
For the drug to take effect, disk-shaped buttons are cut from the roots, on the top of the cactus, and dried. It is chewed to produce its effect or soaked in water for an intoxicating drink. The effective human dosage is 0.3–0.5 grams, with the effects lasting for up to 12 hours. Users typically experience visual hallucinations and radically altered states of consciousness, often experienced as pleasurable and illuminating but occasionally as accompanied by feelings of anxiety or revulsion. It is not physically addictive.

Legal status
In the US it was made illegal in 1970 by the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act. It was prohibited internationally by the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances and is categorized as a Schedule I hallucinogen by the CSA.

Chemistry
A common synthetical approach starts from 3,4,5-trimethoxybenzaldehyde. the chemecial make-up is C11H17NO3(PiHKAL entry).

Effects and side effects
One or more of the following effects may or may not accompany any individual experience with mescaline.


 * Open eye visuals
 * Closed-eye visuals
 * New thought processes
 * Dream-like scenarios
 * Euphoria
 * Mystical experience
 * Pupil dilation
 * Sensations of warm and cold
 * Temporary splitting/destruction of ego
 * Dizziness
 * Vomiting
 * Tachycardia
 * Diarrhea
 * Headaches
 * Anxiety
 * Feeling of dying
 * Fear of not being able to return to normal consciousness
 * Hallucinogen persisting perception disorder (HPPD)
 * Irrationality of the thought-process

Categorization
Mezkalin Meskalin Meskalin Mescalina Mescaline Meskalino Mescalina מסקלין Meskalinas Mescaline メスカリン Meskalina Mescalina Мескалин Meskalín Meskalín Meskaliini Meskalin