(Health Risks From Ibogaine Use) "Because ibogaine inhibits cardiac ion channels in therapeutic concentrations, the drug is potentially proarrhythmic. The risk of its administration, however, is possibly reduced by the fact that the drug also shows antiarrhythmic properties."

(Mortality Risk From Ibogaine) "All available autopsy, toxicological, and investigative reports were systematically reviewed for the consecutive series of all known fatalities outside of West Central Africa temporally related to the use of ibogaine from 1990 through 2008. Nineteen individuals (15 men, four women between 24 and 54 years old) are known to have died within 1.5-76 h of taking ibogaine. The clinical and postmortem evidence did not suggest a characteristic syndrome of neurotoxicity.

(Growth of Ibogaine Subculture) "The estimated number of participants in the ibogaine subculture increased fourfold relative to the prior estimate of 5 years earlier, an average yearly rate of growth of approximately 30%."

(Ibogaine Subculture Contrasted With Other Drug Subcultures) "The clinical focus on the treatment of opioid withdrawal distinguishes the ibogaine subculture from subcultures associated with psychedelic or other illegal drugs. The reason for taking ibogaine was more frequently to alleviate the symptoms of opioid withdrawal than to pursue spiritual or psychological goals. In the US, the expansion of the ibogaine subculture coincides temporally with a substantial increase in the public health impact of opioid use disorders (Compton and Volkow, 2006).

Laws and Policies

(Ibogaine's Legal Status) "Having been discovered by a drug addict, rather than by scientists in a laboratory, ibogaine has been condemned from the very beginning.¹³³ Classified as a Schedule I controlled substance, ibogaine is listed in the same category with the very drugs it counteracts because its hallucinogenic properties arguably outweigh its medicinal value."

(Ibogaine and Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (GDNF)) "Ibogaine is a natural alkaloid reported to reverse the adverse actions of multiple drugs of abuse including opiates, psychostimulants, nicotine and alcohol in humans, as well as in rodent models (Popik et al., 1995; Mash et al., 1998; Glick & Maisonneuve, 2000; Alper et al., 2008; Maciulaitis et al., 2008).

(Ibogaine and Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (GDNF)) "In summary, repeated administration of drugs of abuse and alcohol induces a common pattern of changes in gene expression and protein levels selectively in the VTA [ventral tegmental area]. A subset of these changes is reversed by intra-VTA GDNF [glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor], as are some of the drug-induced behavioral effects. Endogenous GDNF systems appear to inhibit drug related behaviors, while repeated drug administration appears to inhibit GDIVF signaling itself.

(Side Effects From Ibogaine) "Although ibogaine has been reported to effectively reduce drug cravings and withdrawal symptoms in addicts (Sheppard, 1994), its tremorigenic, hallucinogenic, neurotoxic, and cardiovascular side effects (see Alper, 2001) have prevented its approval as a treatment for addiction. On the other hand, 18-methoxycoronaridine, although not yet tested in humans, has no apparent side effects in rats, presumably because it is more selective pharmacologically than ibogaine."

Sociopolitical and Clinical Research

(Rat Studies of Ibogaine) "18-MC [18-methoxycoronaridine], a novel iboga alkaloid congener, reduces intravenous methamphetamine and nicotine self-administration in rats. These and previous results with morphine, cocaine and alcohol indicate that 18-MC warrants further development as a potential treatment for multiple forms of drug addiction."

(Rodent Studies of Ibogaine and Clinical Safety) "Based on anecdotal reports in humans, ibogaine has been claimed [1] to be effective in interrupting dependence on opioids, stimulants, alcohol and nicotine. Preclinical studies in rats have supported these claims: ibogaine has been reported to decrease the i.v. self-administration of morphine [2] and cocaine [3] and the oral intake of alcohol [4] and nicotine [5].