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Pachycereus pringlei

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Pachycereus pringlei
Pachycereus pringlei in Viscaino, Baja California Sur, Mexico
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Cactaceae
Subfamily: Cactoideae
Genus: Pachycereus
Species:
P. pringlei
Binomial name
Pachycereus pringlei
Synonyms

Cereus pringlei S.Watson[2]

Pachycereus pringlei (also known as Mexican giant cardon or elephant cactus) is a species of large cactus native to northwestern Mexico, in the states of Baja California, Baja California Sur, and Sonora. It is commonly known as cardón, a name derived from the Spanish word cardo, meaning "thistle"; additionally, it is often referred to as sabueso (or “bloodhound”), which is possibly an early Spanish interpretation of the native Seri term for the plant, xaasj.[3]

Large stands of this cactus still exist, but many have been destroyed as land has been cleared for cultivation in Sonora.

Climate change will likely impact the future distribution of numerous plant species, including Pachycereus pringlei, which can be attributed to alterations in precipitation and temperature.[4]

The cactus fruits were always an important food for the Seri people, in Sonora; the dried cactus columns themselves could be used for construction purposes, as well as for firewood.[5]

A symbiotic relationship with bacterial and fungal colonies, on its roots, allows P. pringlei to grow on bare rock, even where no soil is available at all; the cactus has the distinction of being lithophytic as needed. The root’s bacterial colonies can fix nitrogen from the air and break down the rock to expose hidden sources of nutrients. The cactus even evolved to maintain this symbiotic bacteria within its seeds, serving to benefit by taking it on as part of its very physical biology.[6][7][8]

Morphology

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A cardon specimen is the tallest[1] living cactus in the world, with a maximum recorded height of 19.2 m (63 ft 0 in),[9][10] with a stout trunk up to 1 m (3 ft 3 in) in diameter bearing several erect branches. In overall appearance, it resembles the related saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea), but differs in being more heavily branched and having branching nearer the base of the stem, fewer ribs on the stems, blossoms located lower along the stem, differences in areoles and spination, and spinier fruit.

Its flowers are white, large, nocturnal, and appear along the ribs as opposed to only apices of the stems.

Lifespan and growth

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An average mature cardon may reach a height of 10 metres (30 ft), but individuals as tall as 18 metres (60 ft) are known.[11] It is a slow-growing plant [12] with a lifespan measured in hundreds of years. One way scientists have aged these cacti has been to use radiocarbon dating to test the spines closest to the ground.[13] Growth can be significantly enhanced in its initial stages by inoculation with plant growth-promoting bacteria such as Azospirillum species.[14][15][16] Most adult cardon have several side branches that may be as massive as the trunk. The resulting tree may attain a weight of 25 tons.[17]

Constituents and biological effects

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See also: Substituted tetrahydroisoquinoline

Pachycereus pringlei has psychedelic effects and appears to have been used by ancient people in the Baja California, Mexico as an entheogen.[18][19][20][21] This was discovered by businessman Earl Crockett, who then contacted and became acquainted with Alexander Shulgin.[18][19][21] Shulgin further evaluated Pachycereus pringlei, including self-experimentation and analytical characterization.[20][22][23][21] He described it as a "mild psychedelic" and as "very definitely psychedelic, a little bit on the light side".[20][21] In 2001, a group of twelve, including Alexander and Ann Shulgin, bioassayed the cactus.[20][21] Half had a "marvelous" or "good" but otherwise unremarkable psychedelic experience, while the other half became "viciously/violently" "poisoned/ill".[20][21] Its effects included visuals, dysphoria or anxiety, heavy body load, diarrhea, and, in the case of Alexander Shulgin, an overwhelming fear of moving.[20][24][23][21] Ann Shulgin had an even more severe reaction than Alexander Shulgin, stating that she "could see the full moon shining down on me with what felt like chilling contempt" and thinking to herself "What an awful, stupid way to die".[20][24] Alexander Shulgin said that he was unable to figure out why half the group became sick and the other half did not.[21] His efforts to complete his research on the cactus were hampered by difficulty in finding people willing to consume it due to its serious adverse effects in many people.[23]

In contrast to other psychedelic cacti, Pachycereus pringlei does not contain mescaline.[22][23] However, a number of mescaline-related constituents have been identified in Pachycereus pringlei, including the phenethylamines 3,4-dimethoxyphenethylamine (not rigidly proven) and N-methylmescaline and the tetrahydroisoquinolines or cyclized phenethylamines heliamine, N-methylheliamine, tehaunine, tehaunine N-oxide, lemaireocereine, weberine, and carnegine.[25][23][26] When Shulgin started investigating Pachycereus pringlei, five compounds in it had already been identified (possibly referring to heliamine, tehaunine, tehaunine N-oxide, lemaireocereine, and weberine), and Shulgin stated that he had seen mass spectrometry for an additional 18 compounds.[22][25] Some of the additional compounds, like N-methylmescaline, were subsequently disclosed by Keeper Trout.[23][26]

Some of the isoquinoline constituents that Shulgin assessed, like carnegine, have been identified as potent monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs).[21][27] According to Shulgin, N-methylmescaline, in combination with MAOIs also present in the cactus that allow N-methylmescaline to become orally active, may be the active psychedelic constituent.[23][26][18][21] This has led to Pachycereus pringlei being dubbed by Shulgin as "cactahuasca" (or spelled "cactihuasca" or "cactohuasca"), as it would be analogous to ayahuasca, a combination of the monoamine oxidase (MAO)-metabolized and normally orally-inactive psychedelic dimethyltryptamine (DMT) with MAOI harmala alkaloids that allow for oral activity.[18][21][28] In any case, Shulgin's hypothesis of Pachycereus pringlei's psychedelic activity remains unconfirmed, and the active constituents have yet to be fully resolved.[23] Keeper Trout has noted that N-methylation of psychedelic phenethylamines, for instance Beatrice (N-methyl-DOM), has invariably eliminated their hallucinogenic activity.[26] On the other hand, trichocereine (N,N-dimethylmescaline) has been reported to be psychedelic, although these findings are conflicting and controversial.[29][30][31] No naturally occurring isoquinolines are known to be hallucinogenic in humans as of 2013.[26]

Some of the alkaloids in Pachycereus pringlei, like carnegine, are known to have toxic effects in animals, for instance strychnine-like convulsions.[26][27]

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  • Habit
    Habit
  • With an osprey nest atop
    With an osprey nest atop
  • Flowering
    Flowering
  • Husk of a fallen fruit
    Husk of a fallen fruit
  • With human for scale
    With human for scale
  • Spines
    Spines
  • Close up of a single plant
    Close up of a single plant

Notes

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1.^ The tallest living cactus is a specimen of Pachycereus pringlei. The tallest cactus ever measured was an armless Saguaro cactus which blew over in a windstorm in 1986; it was 23.8 meters (78 feet) tall.[10]

References

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  1. ^ Burquez Montijo, A. (2017) [amended version of 2013 assessment]. "Pachycereus pringlei". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T151996A121574684. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T151996A121574684.en. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  2. ^ "Pachycereus pringlei". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 2011-11-03.
  3. ^ Chamlee, Bob. "Cardón cactus, Pachycereus pringlei". Los Cabos Guide to Good Eating and More!. Archived from the original on 2006-04-15. Retrieved 2011-11-03.
  4. ^ Urban, Mark C. (May 2015). "Accelerating extinction risk from climate change". Science. 348 (6234): 571–573. Bibcode:2015Sci...348..571U. doi:10.1126/science.aaa4984. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 25931559.
  5. ^ *Felger, Richard; Mary B. Moser. (1985). People of the desert and sea: ethnobotany of the Seri Indians. Tucson: University of Arizona Press. ISBN 0-8165-0818-6.
  6. ^ Puente, M. E.; Y. Bashan; C. Y. Li; V. K. Lebsky (September 2004). "Microbial populations and activities in the rhizoplane of rock-weathering desert plants. I. Root colonization and weathering of igneous rocks". Plant Biology. 6 (5). Stuttgart: 629–42. Bibcode:2004PlBio...6..629P. doi:10.1055/s-2004-821100. PMID 15375735.
  7. ^ Puente, M. E.; C. Y. Li; Y. Bashan (September 2004). "Microbial populations and activities in the rhizoplane of rock-weathering desert plants. II. Growth promotion of cactus seedlings". Plant Biology. 6 (5). Stuttgart: 643–50. Bibcode:2004PlBio...6..643P. doi:10.1055/s-2004-821101. PMID 15375736.
  8. ^ Walker, Matt (2009-08-19). "How cacti become 'rock busters'". BBC News.
  9. ^ Salak, M. "In search of the tallest cactus". Cactus and Succulent Journal. 72 (3): 163–164.
  10. ^ a b "Windstorm Fells 78-Foot Cactus--Tallest in World". Retrieved 2015-08-04.
  11. ^ (León de la Luz and Valiente 1994).
  12. ^ (Roberts, 1989)
  13. ^ Delgado-Fernández, Mariana; Garcillán, Pedro P; Ezcurra, Exequiel (September 2016). "On the Age and Growth Rate of Giant Cacti: Radiocarbon Dating of the Spines of Cardon ( Pachycereus Pringlei )". Radiocarbon. 58 (3): 479–490. Bibcode:2016Radcb..58..479D. doi:10.1017/RDC.2016.25. ISSN 0033-8222. S2CID 130664993 – via Cambridge Journals.
  14. ^ (Bashan et al., 1999
  15. ^ Carrillo et al., 2000
  16. ^ Puente and Bashan, 1993
  17. ^ (Gibson and Nobel, 1986).
  18. ^ a b c d "'Brand new' psychedelic discovered". 11 January 2005. Hit of the Sacred Elixir Conference (San Jose, California on October 22 - 24) was Earl Crockett's presentation on "a new elixir" in which Earl described his adventures in Baja California discovering a pictoglyph-covered cave and an alleged cactus that was ingested by the inhabitants (who predated the Indians--Earl speculates by thousands of years). He shared the stage with Alexander Shulgin who told of how he analyzes new chemical compounds and how Earl's cactus - Pachycereus pringlei - was indeed a brand new kind of psychedelic. Cactouasca: Sasha outlined the four basic types of one-compound psychedelics and then described ayahuasca which is a two-compound psychedelic--1) a DMT analogue plus 2) an MAO inhibitor to prevent the first from being destroyed. There are many varieties of ayahuasca that differ in the plant substances that provide these two components--that is, many different plants that carry DMT and many plants that carry MAO inhibitors. There is even something called "pharmauasca" which is not derived from plants at all but which is simply synthetic DMT (in a capsule) and synthetic MAO-inhibitor in another capsule. Earl's cactus was different from all of these--it contained a lot of MAO inhibitor but no DMT. (DMT, says, Shulgin is found everywhere in nature but never in cactuses). Instead in Earl's cactuses there were mescaline-like substances that have no psychoactive effects on humans--by themselves. Shulgin's guess is that the presence of the MAO-inhibitor in the cactus protects the mescaline-like molecule from degredation and hence permits it to act on the brain in a mescalin-like way. So Earl's cactus is indeed a "brand new elixir"--a heretofore unexplored two-compound psychedelic for which Shulgin coined the term "cactouasca". CACTOUASCA--You heard it here first.
  19. ^ a b Earl Crockett; Alexander Shulgin (October 2005). A New Elixir. Sacred Elixir Conference, San Jose, California on October 22 - 24, 2005. Earl Crockett has not only discovered that the cactus Pachycereus pringlei has psychedelic properties, he has also discovered cave paintings which reveal its ancient use as a sacrament. His talk describing the discovery of this remarkable plant will be accompanied by slides of the cactus and of the cave paintings. Dr. Shulgin will describe the processes of gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy, how one goes about determining what alkaloids are in a plant and what he found to be present in this cactus.
  20. ^ a b c d e f g Brown, Ethan (1 September 2002). "Professor X". WIRED. Retrieved 13 May 2025. JUST AFTER sunset on a cool California evening last fall, Alexander Shulgin prepared to test the effects of the cactus Pachycereus pringlei on himself, his wife, and 10 other subjects. The group, which included two chemists and an anthropologist, gathered in the living room of a redwood house deep in the woods to help Shulgin with his research into psychedelic cacti. A few months earlier, the anthropologist had told Shulgin that this particular variety was worth looking into — a cave painting in Mexico suggested it might have psychoactive properties. Through chromatography, Shulgin determined that P. pringlei probably was a mild psychedelic, but "the establishment of its human pharmacology requires that it be consumed by man." So Shulgin dissolved the extract of the cactus into fruit juice, then poured a 4-ounce cup for each person. But his experiment went awry. "At about the two-hour point, my visual experiences became totally swamped by an overwhelming fear of moving," recalls Shulgin, the 77-year-old chemist who introduced ecstasy to the world. His wife, Ann, had an even more severe reaction. Out on the deck, she remembers, "I could see the full moon shining down on me with what felt like chilling contempt, and I thought, What an awful, stupid way to die." With her pulse racing, she went inside to check on her husband, who was upstairs in one of the bedrooms, lying still in the dark. "He said he was OK as long as he didn't move." Early the next morning, Shulgin assembled his test group, still in pajamas, to assess the effects of the cactus extract. All 12 of them had taken the same compound, but half had become violently ill, while the other six had the kind of pleasant but unremarkable experience Shulgin expected. The results, he decided, were inconclusive.
  21. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Alexander Shulgin. Cacti: A Discourse by Sasha Shulgin. Mind States: Jamaica, October 1–6, 2002. Event occurs at 16:28–17:55, 25:45–28:44, [...]
  22. ^ a b c "Future Psychedelics". Ask Dr. Shulgin Online. 12 June 2002. Retrieved 20 May 2025. Another continuing source of new things will be from our plant teachers in nature. We are continuously being made aware of new, active plants about which we know very little. My present pursuits are the psychoactive cacti. A good example is a relatively unexplored columnar giant called Pachycereus pringlei. In the published literature, there have been five compounds reported as being present. I have seen four of these, and have obtained mass spectra of 18 additional compounds. Some of these new components I have already identified, but none of these is known to be active in man. And yet I know that the cactus is active as I have actually eaten it and have gotten real effects. Could this be an example of a plant that contains two compounds that are active in combination whereas neither one is active as an isolated chemical? Such things are known in nature.
  23. ^ a b c d e f g h Keeper Trout & friends (2014). Cactus Chemistry By Species (Sacred Cacti 4th edition Part C Cactus Chemistry: Section 2) (PDF). Mydriatic Productions/Better Days Publishing. Pachycereus pringlei (S.Wats) Br. & R.: AKA "saguesa" or the "elephant cactus" This species is most commonly called "cardon" (a name that is also used for many other Cereoids) [...] Pachycereus pringlei: One of the three cactus that the Seri believe used to be human. Felger & Moser 1985 [...] Following his adventure Earl sought out Sasha Shulgin in an attempt to stimulate more research into the plant's bioactivity. A nice account of the next part of the story appears at: mdma.net/alexander-shu...ofessor-x.html [...] In a series of personal conversation between 2001-2005 Shulgin commented on his observation of N-Methylmescaline in the plant and its possible significance. He mentioned that, despite its established lack of interesting properties, he then suspected that was probably the active compound, enabled to be active orally by due to the presence of one or more MAOIs. Sasha referred to the combination as cactihuasca. He also lamented about the difficulty of finding bioassayists for completing this research. Apparently this was due to a heavy body load for both the plant and pure compound combinations. This is essentially where the matter still stands today, a decade later.
  24. ^ a b Telegraph Obituaries (15 July 2022). "Ann Shulgin, pioneering researcher who with her husband Alexander explored the uses of psychedelic drugs – obituary". The Telegraph. Retrieved 20 May 2025. By no means all Ann and Sasha's experiences with psychedelics were happy ones. In 2001 they tested the cactus Pachycereus pringlei, native to northwestern Mexico, dissolving an extract in fruit juice and each drinking a 100 ml cup. While Sasha was overcome by a fear of movement, Ann "could see the full moon shining down on me with what felt like chilling contempt". This would be, she reflected, "an awful, stupid way to die".
  25. ^ a b Lundström, Jan (1983). "Chapter 6 Simple Isoquinoline Alkaloids". The Alkaloids: Chemistry and Pharmacology. Vol. 21. Elsevier. p. 255–327. doi:10.1016/s0099-9598(08)60052-8. ISBN 978-0-12-469521-4. TABLE 1: SIMPLE ISOQUINOLINE ALKALOIDS [...] TABLE II SIMPLE ISOQUINOLINE ALKALOIDS IN THE FAMILY OF CACTACEAE [...] [...] Pachycereus pringlei (S. Wats) Br&R: Heliamine (10), Lemaireocereine (7), Tehaunine (34), Weberine (40), Tehaunine N-oxide (34a). In Pachycereus pringlei, heliamine (10), tehaunine (34), lemaireocereine (7), and weberine (40) were identified (59).
  26. ^ a b c d e f Keeper Trout & friends (2013). Trout’s Notes on The Cactus Alkaloids Nomenclature, Physical properties, Pharmacology & Occurrences (Sacred Cacti Fourth Edition, Part C: Cactus Chemistry: Section 1) (PDF). Mydriatic Productions/Better Days Publishing. pp. 149–150, 159, 161, 163, 170, 174, 187, 204. N-Methylmescaline: Human studies show no effects at levels of 25 mg. Shulgin 1973 cited Shulgin, 1967 (Unpublished data) No effects in man. Shulgin 1976 cited Shulgin 1973 N-Methylmescaline has decreased potency. [Ed.: This is true, but more than a little misleading.] Hardman et al. 1973 Shulgin suspected this alkaloid to be the active component in the cactus Pachycereus pringlei. He suspected that it was only enabled to be active due to the co-presence of an MAOI. [...] No naturally occurring isoquinolines are yet proven & reported to be hallucinogenic, although many are pharmacologically active in a wide variety of ways.
  27. ^ a b Cassels, Bruce K. (2019). "Alkaloids of the Cactaceae — The Classics". Natural Product Communications. 14 (1). doi:10.1177/1934578X1901400123. ISSN 1934-578X. In contrast to mescaline and hordenine, the simple isoquinoline alkaloids of cacti have attracted little interest. The late 19th century efforts of Heffter and other authors, who generally observed convulsions in different animal species at high doses, were promptly reviewed by Affanasia Mogilewa (1903) who extended her studies to the isolated frog heart [56]. Some of Heffter's selfexperiments revealed nothing of interest and, specifically, no effects remotely resembling those of mescaline. [...] A variety of simple isoquinoline alkaloids were later examined vs. monoamine oxidases (MAOs) [58]. The only cactus alkaloids included were carnegine (both enantiomers), racemic O-methylanhalonidine and Omethylpellotine, and some members of the newly discovered (since 1985) 5,6,7,8-tetraoxygenated Pachycereus alkaloids. R-(+)- carnegine proved to be a rather potent competitive MAO-A inhibitor, with a 2 μM Ki value, while its enantiomer was fifty times less potent. O-Methylanhalonidine and O-methylpellotine were weaker than S-(-)carnegine, with Ki values of 160-170 μM, and the 5,6,7,8-tetraoxygenated analogs were several times less potent. None of these showed significant inhibition of MAO-B. [...] The fairly potent MAO-A inhibitory action of carnegine suggests that this and similar alkaloids, if present in a cactus or one of its extracts, might potentiate the effects of mescaline.
  28. ^ C. E. G. (2003). "Network Feedback: Morphine Dreams". The Entheogen Review. 12 (2): 59. I recently had the cool experience of going to the Mind States IV conference, and I was very interested when I heard Sasha Shulgin's comments about the possibility of a "cactahuasca" type effect with the cactus Pachycereus pringlei. Maybe there is some potentiation effect with the isoquinolines contained in this plant, or maybe there are compounds that lack activity on their own, but which are activated when combined.
  29. ^ Shulgin AT (1978). "Psychotomimetic Drugs: Structure-Activity Relationships". In Iversen LL, Iversen SD, Snyder SH (eds.). Stimulants. Boston, MA: Springer US. pp. 243–333. doi:10.1007/978-1-4757-0510-2_6. ISBN 978-1-4757-0512-6. 2.2.2. N,N-Dimethylmescaline: N,N-Dimethylmescaline (24, trichocerine) has never been observed in peyote, although the 3-O-demethylated homolog is present and has been studied in biosynthetic schemes (Lundstrom, 1971b). The compound has been reported as the major component of the mescaline-containing cactus Trichocerius terscheckii (Reti, 1939; Reti and Castrillon, 1951). The fact that both animals and man can, with impunity, drink the fluids from the crushed pulp of this plant has prompted a study into the psychopharmacological properties of trichocerine. Luduena (1935, 1936) in a single acute experiment consumed 550 mg of the trichocerine hydrochloride and noted no effects of a sensory nature, only a slight gastric heaviness. Vojtechovsky and Krus (1967) have reported that this base has less than one-half the potency of mescaline in humans. At doses of up to 800 mg, with one exception, all responses were weaker than those noted for a 400 mg challenge of mescaline. A 400 mg trial with trichocerine via the perlingual route showed a moderate psychodysleptic effect with a one-hour latency (mescaline required two hours with this mode of absorption). The duration of symptoms was proportionally shorter.
  30. ^ Shulgin AT (1979). "Chemistry of phenethylamines related to mescaline". J Psychedelic Drugs. 11 (1–2): 41–52. doi:10.1080/02791072.1979.10472091. PMID 522167. The N,N-dimethyl homolog, trichocerine, is the major component of another cactus Trichocereus terscheckii. This compound is without activity in humans even in large quantities, as shown by direct experimentation and by the fact that the plant from which it comes is commonly used as a water source by both humans and animals. This alkaloid has never been reported to be in Peyote. [...] Trichocerine, although not in Peyote, is a major component of other cacti and is a valid nitrogen-substituted homolog of mescaline. In studies with acute dosages of up to 800 mg there is some gastric heaviness noted but no changes of the visual or interpretive state. One study of 400 mg administered sublingually led to the observation of some ill-defined psychotropic disturbances for about an hour, but it was felt that these might be ascribable to anxiety.
  31. ^ Shulgin AT (March 1973). "Mescaline: the chemistry and pharmacology of its analogs". Lloydia. 36 (1): 46–58. PMID 4576313. The homologous N,N-dimethylmescaline (trichocerine, 8) has never been observed in peyote, although it has been observed in a number of closely related cacti. It has been included in this report because of its close relationship to the well-documented presence of the mono-methyl homolog, and the known presence of methylating enzymes in the peyote plant. The compound has been found devoid of any central activity in humans even following parenterally administered dosages of more than 500 mg (19). [...] 19. LUDUENA, F. P. 1936. Pharmacology of trichocerine, an alkaloid from the cactus. C. R. Soc. Biol. 121: 368.
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