A class of PSYCHOACTIVE drugs that have the ability to induce HALLUCINATION (usually visual or auditory). These compounds can be found in different classes of drugs and can have differing chemical structures, but all have the ability to alter perception and thinking. Most are found naturally occurring in plants, and some are synthesized.
The most well known hallucinogens are LYSERGIC ACID DIETHYLAMIDE (LSD), PHENCYCLIDINE (PCP), MESCALINE (the active ingredient in the cactus PEYOTE), PSILOCYBIN (found in certain mush rooms). There are many other less well-known hallucinogenic substances found in diverse plants such as ATROPINE (belladonna) in deadly nightshade, jimson in datura, and myristicin in nutmeg. CANNABINOIDS (found in MARIJUANA) are also hallucinogens, but generally are not considered as such since the drug is generally used in sub-hallucinogenic doses. In many native societies, both ancient and modern, hallucinogens have been used in ritual religious ceremonies, presumably to invoke altered mental states associated with spirituality. The precise brain mechanisms underlying hallucino gens are not known, but they generally act to alter SEROTONERGIC, NORADRENERGIC, or CHOLINERGIC systems.
ANN E.KELLEY
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