species of Virola for the preparation of the halluci-nogenic snuff 
or paste is V. theiodora. 
Virola theiodora occurs mainly in the western Amazonia of 
Brazil and Colombia, possibly also in adjacent parts of Peru and 
Venezuela. It is especially abundant in the Rio Negro drainage- 
area. The tree is normally found in well drained forests. 
The analyses which follow have been carried out on material 
without regard as to whether or not it enters into native 
hallucinogenic preparations. 
CHEMICAL CONSIDERATIONS 
In 1977, the Alpha-Helix Amazon Expedition 1976-1977, 
Phase VII, dedicated to Ethnopharmacological Studies of the 
Flora and Fauna of the Pebas Region of the Peruvian Amazon, 
presented an unparalleled opportunity to study the use of orally 
administered paste prepared from Virola among the Bora and 
Witoto Indians of the area and to investigate plants and 
derivatives of plants in the fully equipped chemical laboratory on 
board. One of the projects undertaken by Phase VII constituted 
ethnopharmacological and chemical studies of various local 
species of Virola and, to a lesser extent, of the allied genera 
Iryanthera and Osteophloeum. 
These studies are of interest, partly because the material 
analyzed was, in all cases, fresh, partly because some of the 
species studied had never been subjected to chemical investiga- 
tion and partly because several of them were formerly employed 
by the Bora and Witoto Indians of the region in their magico- 
religious rituals and witchcraft. 
The material collected during the 1977 Alpha-Helix expedition 
was preserved in a freezer (dark, —40°C) until analyzed. Most of 
these specimens of Virola were collected in the Rio Ampiyacu and 
Rio Yaguasyacu region and also near Pebas (Rio Amazonas, 
Peru). 
Reference Compounds 
The reference compounds have been synthesized as described 
earlier (Agurell er a/. 1969). 
Isolation of Alkaloids 
The powdered plant material (1-20 g) was extracted with 
methanol. After filtration and evaporation, equivalent amounts 
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