Ibogaine: Proceedings from the First International Conference

This book presents the Proceedings from the First International Conference on Ibogaines, held in November of 1999 at New York University's School of Medicine. In essence, it presents significant new data on neurobiological, clinical, sociocultural, and policy aspects of ibogaine.

Ibogaine is a natural product derived from the bark of the root of the African shrub Tabernathe iboga. It has a history of use as a medicinal and ceremonial agent in West Central Africa, and has been alleged to be effective as a treatment for substance dependence. The study of Ibogaine may shed light on the neurobiology of addiction and lead to the development of new medication for the treatment of addiction.

Currently, there is lack of formal approval for the use of ibogaine, and the demand of the addicts themselves has led to a distinctive unofficial network which has provided ibogaine treatment in non-medical settings. If critical safety concerns can be adequately addressed, ibogaine may provide an inexpensive and practical treatment approach, well adapted to environments where resources are severely limited and there is pressing need for clinical services for heroin addicts, such as Eastern Europe.

This is a paperback edition of Volume 56 of The Alkaloids (ISBN: 0-12-469556-6) edited by Geoffrey A. Cordell, University of Illinois at Chicago, U.S.A.

Mechanisms of Action of Ibogaine: Relevance to Putative Therapeutic Effects and Development of a Safer Iboga Alkaloid Congener (Stanley Glick, Isabelle Maisonneuve, Karen Szumlinski)

Ibogaine as a Glutamate Antagonist: Relevance to its Putative Antiaddictive Properties (Phil Skolnick)

Drug Discrimination Studies with Ibogaine (Scott Helsley, Richard Rabin, J.C. Winter)

Changes in Gene Expression and Signal Transduction Following Ibogaine Treatment (Emmanuel Onaivi, B. Emmanuel Akinshola, Syed Ali)

Characterization of Multiple Sites of Action of Ibogaine (Henry Sershen, Audrey Hashim, Abel Lajtha)

Comparative Neuropharmacology of Ibogaine and Its O-Des Methyl Metabolite, Noribogaine (Michael Baumann, John Pablo, Syed Ali, Richard Rothman, Deborah Mash)

Ibogaine in the Treatment of Heroin Withdrawal (Deborah Mash, Craig Kovera, John Pablo, Rachel Tyndale, Frank Ervin, Jeffrey Kamlet, W. Lee Hearn)

Sigma Receptors and Iboga Alkaloids (Wayne Bowen)

Ibogaine Neurotoxicity Assessment: Electrophysiological, Neurochemical, and Neurohistological Methods (Zbigniew Binienda, Andrew Scallet, Larry Schmued, Syed Ali)

Modulation of the Effects of Rewarding Drugs by Ibogaine (Linda Parker, Shepard Siegel)

Anxiogenic Action of Ibogaine (Piotr Popik, Magorzata Wrobel)

"Returning to the Path": The Use of Ibogaine in Equatorial African Ritual Context and the Binding of Time, Space, and Social Relationships (James W. Fernandez, Renate Fernandez)

Contemporary History (Kenneth Alper, Dana Beal, Charles Kaplan)

From the Roots Up: Ibogaine and Addict Self-Help (Geerte Frenken)

Case Studies of Ibogaine Treatment: Implications for Patient Management Strategies (Howard Lotsof, Norma Alexander)