Coca plant

A central nervous system stimulant obtained from the leaves of the coca plant)... 

Cocaine comes from the Coca plant, grown in the high arid, mountainous areas of South America. It is usually extracted from the leaves of the plant but the leaves themselves can be chewed and a smokable paste made from the leaves is mainly used in countries where the plant grows. 

One of the most common psychostimulants, cocaine, is derived from the coca plant (Erythroxylon coca) and has a long history as a stimulant. It has been used for centuries in Bolivia and Peru as a tonic and other preparations to alleviate fatigue (Siegel 1985 Hill et al. 1977). 

Cocaine is derived from the coca plant Erythroxylon coca. This drug is a water soluble alkaloid that is readily absorbed through mucous membranes. Cocaine s activity is due... 

The coca plant is an evergreen, native to South America, particularly the countries of Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile and Columbia, and should not be confused with the cocoa plant, from which chocolate is made. Although the coca plant is natural to South America, it has been successfully cultivated in Java, West Indies, India and Australia. 

Cocaine is the principal psychoactive alkaloid from the coca plant (figure 4.16). Other tropine alkaloids include c/s-cinnamoyl cocaine, trans-cinnamoyl cocaine, o-truxillin, and j truxillin (Gruenwald et al. 1998). 

When we look at another tropane alkaloid, cocaine, we get a different scenario. Cocaine is obtained from the coca plant Erythroxylum coca, and is a powerfnl local anaesthetic, bnt now known primarily as a dmg of abuse. There is no chiral centre in the acid portion, which is benzoic acid, but the optical activity of cocaine comes from the alcohol methylecgonine. Because of the ester function in methylecgonine, the tropane system is no longer symmetrical, and the four chiral centres all contribute towards optical activity. 

One of the more notorious and abused stimulants is cocaine, a natural product isolated from the South American coca plant, shown in Figure 14.25. Once in the bloodstream, cocaine produces a sense of euphoria and increased stamina. It is also a powerhd local anesthetic when applied topically. Within a few decades of its first isolation from plant material in 1860, cocaine was used as a local anesthetic for eye surgery and dentistry—a practice that stopped once safer local anesthetics were discovered in the early 1900s. 

The South American coca plant has been used by indigenous cultures for many years in religious ceremonies and as an aid to staying awake on long hunting trips. Leaves are either chewed or ground to a powder that is inhaled nasally. 

What does cocaine do in the brain First, it binds to sodium ion channels and blocks them from functioning. This action stops the flow of action potentials and prevents neurons from communicating with each other. Cocaine also blocks the conduction of pain signals, which explains why, after it was isolated from the coca plant ((Erythroxylon coca) in 1855, it was used as a local anesthetic, including for the eye and for toothaches. But ultimately, its anesthetic actions would be discovered to have... 

Because they both seem to function as uppers, some people think that cocaine and methamphetamine are essentially the same drug. While it is true that they both have similar mental and physiological effects, the two drugs do act quite differently. In contrast to cocaine, which is rapidly broken down in the body, methamphetamine tends to accumulate in both the body and brain, thereby leading to longer effects and more potential to cause long-term brain damage. Also, cocaine is derived from a natural substance, the coca plant, while methamphetamine is a totally synthetic chemical. 

Raw opium is harvested from the seed pod of the opium poppy. As many as 50 substances called alkaloids can then be derived from opium, and the opium can be further processed. Alkaloids are naturally occurring plant products that possess some pharmacological activity, and are found in other plants as well as opium poppies. Cocaine and nicotine are examples of alkaloids derived from the coca plant and the tobacco plant,... 

Cocaine is another drug that was used in the effort to break addiction to opium, morphine, and heroin. At first, this stimulant found in the leaves of the coca plant was not thought to be addictive. 

The coca plant, which is thought to predate the appearance of man, thrives in South America. Thousands of years ago, workers in the Andes chewed coca leaves to lessen the discomfort of long hours of work in cold climates. In the 1890s black stevedores in New Orleans used cocaine to help endure their grueling work loading steamboats. Black laborers in other parts of the South are thought to have used cocaine as they worked on cotton plantations, railroad work camps, and construction sites..—... 

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