Lecture 8 from a college level neuropharmacology course taught in the spring 2012 semester by Brian J. Piper, Ph.D. (psy391@gmail.com) at Willamette University. Includes neurochemistry, pharmacodynamics.

1. 1.8
Drugs, Brain, & Behavior:
Absinthe
Brian J. Piper, Ph.D.

2. 1.6
Goals
• History
• Chemistry
• Botany
• Pharmacodynamics
• Pharmacokinetics
"After the first glass, you see things as you wish they were.
After the second, you see them as they are not. Finally, you
see things as they really are, which is the most horrible thing
in the world"

3. 5.6 History
• 400 B.C.: wormwood drink used as a
herbal remedy by Hippocrates.
• 1797: Henri-Louis Pernod opens
absinthe distillery in Switzerland, later
France.
• 1840’s: French soldiers in Algeria
drank absinthe to prevent malaria.
• Late 1800’s/early 1900’s: Peak of
absinthe use
• 1905-1915: Bannings.
• 1990’s- today: resurgence

4. 5.9
Jean Lanfray (1905)
• Laborer from Vaud, Switzerland
• Wine (5 L) + Cognac (6 glasses) +
Absinthe (2 glasses) = Murder (3+)
• Case was media sensation
• Fuel for temperance movement Absinthe is Death (circa 1900 by Emile Decoeur)
By Leal da Camara (1903)

5. Consumption
Artemisia absinthium
2.0

6. 2.5
Art
• Edouard Manet (1859)
• The Absinthe drinker
• Inspiration = poet
Charles Baudlaire?

7. Art II
1.2
Artist Unknown
Viktor Oliva: Absinthe Drinker
Edgar Degas (1876): L’Absinthe
Van Gogh: Still life with Absinthe (1887)
Pablo Picasso

8. 2.2
Van Gogh (1853-1890)
Starry Night (1889)
Self-portrait (1889)

9. Thujone
2.4
• Poison, causes hallucinations, seizures
• GABAA and 5-HT3 antagonist
Lachenmeier et al. Critical Reviews in Food Science & Nutrition, 46, 365-377.
Weisbord et al. (1997) NEJM 337, 825-827.

10. 2.2 Patch-clamp recording
• Ions: elements with charge
(e.g. Cl-)
• Channels: regulate flow of ions
into and out of cell

11. Pharmcodynamics of
2.3
Thujone
* Serotonin is applied to a cell with
a 5-HT3 receptor
* 5-HT inhibits the activity of the cell
* Thujone Blocks the effects of 5-
HT
Deiml (2004) Neuropharmacology 46, 192-201.

12. Is thujone the cause of “absinthism”?
5.3
Absinthe Thujone (mg/l) Year of analysis
French (1904) < .011 1994
Pernod fils (circa 1900) 6 2002
Pernod Tarragona (circa 1930) 1.8 2004
EU legal limit 35 mg/l.
Lachenmeier (2006) Forensic Science International, 158, 1-8.

13. Wernicke-Korsakoff
syndrome
4.5
• Symptoms: severe memory
loss, confabulation, damage to mammillary
bodies
• B1: peas, spinich, liver, cereal
• Example 2:20 – 5:24:
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDcyBXJ
AZNM

14. 1.1
Alcohol and Driving

15. 0.6
Question
• Which of the following statements about Absinthe is
INCORRECT?
A) Absinthe was a popular alcoholic beverage in the 19th
century France, especially among artists and intellectuals.
B) The thujone content in absinthe was higher in the late
1800’s relative to today.
C) The way absinthe acts on the brain is not yet completely
understood.
D) The acute effects of absinthe are different from ethanol.