Speaker: Kenneth Proefrock, NMD A recent foray into the desert to wildcraft Datura led Kenneth Proefrock to ponder the interesting similarities and differences in Hyoscyamine, Datura, Atropa, and Mandragora. There is a whole array of tropane alkaloid-containing plants that also include Garrya, Lycium, Erythoxylum, Duboisia, and Lobelia. We talk a bit about the folklore associated with these plants, their chemistry and actions, and their continued presence in certain domains of medicine (pulmonology and ophthalmology), and discuss a recently discovered group of tropane alkaloids known as calystegines with fascinating chemistry. We explore the effect of pH in the preparation of alkaloid-rich plant materials, and that leads to a discussion of acetracts (vinegar extracts).

Related product: The PowerPoint for this recording is available here: 2023 Medicines from the Earth Herb Symposium: Conference Book Download (PDF)

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