Cactus extract

Cactus Extract. A biodemulsifier has been developed that is based on a cactus extract, an activator for the cactus extract, and a carrier liquid. The cactus extract is made from the leaves and stems of the prickly pear or Opuntia family of cactus [1021]. The leaves and stems of the cactus are brought to a... 

The most detailed directions for cactus extraction are contained in PSYCHEDELIC GUIDE TO THE PREPARATION OF THE EUCHARIST by R. Brown, obtainable for 5.50 from L.S.I. Co., PO Box 4374, Austin, TX 78765. 

Carmine is a colored pigment extracted from the female insect Coccus cacti or Dactylopius coccus, or its eggs. These insects live on prickly pear cactus in Mexico. The Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes brought the dye to Europe after seeing the Aztecs use it. 

Mescaline and related alkaloids are found in varying amounts in cacti of the genera Lophophora, Gymnacalycium, Stensonia, Mammillaria, Ariocarpus, Opuntia, Trichocereus, Pelecyphora, and probably others. Members of the Native American Church do quite well with the dried cactus, but extraction of mescaline is desirable since the pure compound seems to produce fewer unpleasant side effects (e.g., nausea). For an excellent review on the occurrence and chemistry of the mescaline type compounds, see JPS 59,1699(1970) (cf. JPS 60,655(1971)). Various species of these cacti occur in southwestern U.S. as well as Central and South America and have been used by the Aztecs and others for millennia. For a good review of peyote see Lloydia 36,1-58(1973). 

Extraction of Mescaline from Cactus JACS 88,4218(1966), Lloydia 29,318(1966)... 

Cochineal extract is obtained from the bodies of the female cochineal insects, particularly Dactylopius coccus Costa, by treating the dried bodies with ethanol. After removal of the solvent, the dried residue contains about 2-4% carminic acid, the main colored component. The cochineal insects grow on cactus and,... 

Case 22.—Fecula extracted from the stem of the Cactus Pcrwsianm, showing the single, double, and triple grains. It measures from 25 to 30 thousandths of a millimetre. 

Another naturally occurring drug that is similar to amphetamine can be found in the cactus Lophophora williamsii. Extracts are used to prepare a drink called peyote that contains 3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl-ethylamine(the meth and phenyl point to a molecule that is quite lipid soluble). Known as mescaline, this compound is structurally similar to the catecholamines dopamine and norepinephrine but seems to act more directly upon serotonin receptors because of the presence of the meth-oxy groups on the molecule. This feature of the compound s structure would make the compound more fat-soluble and therefore better able to enter the brain quickly and may explain... 

Today though, in academic literature as well as street usage, the drug is referred to as both mescaline and peyote (regardless from which cactus it is actually extracted), often with both words having the same meaning. However, in the strictest sense, mescaline refers to the hallucinogenic crystalline extract of the peyote cactus, a form that is rare. 

Use of peyote or mescaline carries the same fines and punishments as any other Schedule I substance, which can include imprisonment. NAC members who use peyote outside the religious ceremony are not exempt from the consequences for illegal use. The federal guidelines refer specifically to the peyote cactus, L. williamsii. However, any other psychoactive cactus bought and used with the express intent of extracting the mescaline content will carry the same consequences under the law as using the more common form of the peyote cactus. 

Cactus flower extracts have also been reputed to be of benefit in the treatment of men with BPH, although there are no published studies regarding their clinical effects. A recent study demonstrated such extracts to have 5a-reductase inhibitory activity in cultured foreskin fibroblasts, and also in human placental and prostatic homogenates (Jonas et al., 1998). Cernilton, a pollen extract, has also been reported to have an inhibitory effect on 5a-reductase activity (Tunn and Krieg, 1992)... 

The aromatic, tetramethoxy-substituted, tetrahydroisoquinoline alkaloid weberine has been isolated recently from extracts of the Mexican cactus Pachycereus weberi (38). The rare occurrence of four adjacent methoxy groups on an aryl moiety prompted the synthesis and examination by crystal-structure analyses of analogs and derivatives with four and five adjacent methoxy groups on the phenyl ring. In contrast to the problem with... 

Dolichotheline (111) is a histamine-derived alkaloid produced by the cactus Dolichothele sphaerica Britton and Rose (Cactaceae) native to southern Texas and northern Mexico. The alkaloid was first isolated in 1969 by Rosenberg and Paul (160). Spectroscopic data suggested structure 111, 4(5)-(iV-isovalerylaminoethyl)imidazole or 7V -isovalerylhistamine. The structure was proved by synthesis. Refluxing of histamine with isovaleric anhydride yielded 111, identical to the natural product (160). In addition to the major alkaloid dolichotheline, five minor alkaloids have been isolated (161). These were identified as A-methylphenethylamine, /i-O-methylsyn-ephrine, vV-methyltyramine, synephrine, and / -0-ethylsynephrine by IR, NMR, and comparison to authentic materials / -0-ethylsynephrine was probably an artifact of synephrine, since it was not found in a second extraction attempt when no ethanol was used. 

In another methodology, a similar ion-pairing process is involved [10]. However, in this case the sample preparation is described for fresh material. The (fresh) cactus material is pulped and extracted with methanol/ammonia (as in the previous example), or in aqueous buffer at pH 4.0. An ocatdecyl silyl (ODS) stationary phase and a mobile phase of 5.0 mM of aqueous octylamine o-phosphate... 

Cochineal (E 120) is the red coloring matter extracted from the dried bodies of female insects of the species Dactylopius coccus Costa or Coccus cacti L. These insects are cultivated on the cactus plants in Peru, Equador, Guatamala, and Mexico. 

In Peru, the shamans boil the sliced fresh cactus in a large tin of water for eight or more hours, after which they remove the solid material and continue boiling until the broth is reduced to individual teacup sized portions. That s the traditional method. One can duplicate this with dried powder in an electric crockpot, or make a spagyric tincture with ethyl alcohol. (See the chapter on extraction techniques for details of these procedures.)... 

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