Datura

Datura is a genus belonging to the Solanaceae. They are shrubby plants, related to nightshade. Originally from the American continent, different species now grow throughout the globe. Some of them are now classified under the name Brugmansia; commonly called angel's trumpets[?], for the large (in some varieties up to 1 foot long) trumpet-shaped flowers.

All members of the family, under whichever name, contain the anticholinergic[?] alkaloids hyoscyamine, scopolamine and atropine. One annual species, Datura stramonium, or the thorn apple, so called for its spiked seed pods, was grown for its alkaloid content and used in medicine.

Datura was supposedly used in witchcraft to induce hallucinations. If taken one does not stop dreaming even when awake. Hallucinations caused by anticholergenics are extremely powerful from the point of view that they can create fully realistic 3d objects which blend in perfectly with the persons view of the world.

Datura stramonium is commonly called jimsonweed. It got this name from the town of Jamestown, Virginia. In the 1600s, starving settlers were willing to try anything. They figured that if they boiled greens, threw out the water, reboiled them, etc., a few times, any poisons would be eliminated. The toxins in jimsonweed are very strong; this treatment did indeed avoid death, but the settlers were dazed/stoned for several days.

The dose-response curve is very steep, so people who consume datura can easily get into the potentially dangerous zone.

External links

• account of accidental minor poisoning by datura (http://www.bmj.org/cgi/content/full/321/7255/219) from the British Medical Journal[?]