"Recreational use of Ergoline Alkaloids from Argyreia Nervosa"
William E. Shawcross  
Journal of Psychedelic Drugs Vol. 15(4) Oct-Dec 1983

CHEMISTRY AND EFFECT OF THE SEEDS
The Hawaiian baby woodrose entered the drug scene in 1965 with the
publication of a paper in "Science" entitled "Ergoline Alkaloids in Tropical
Wood Roses" by Hylin and Watson. The wide circulation of this journal assured
thorough dissemination of the information they presented. They wrote, "The
possible health and legal problems associated with the presence of similar
compounds in commerically cultivated plants led us to examine the ornamental
wood roses, Ipomoea tuberosa and Argyreia nervosa, both common Hawaiian crops
that have assumed commerical importance as components of [the] dried tropical
flower industry." Comparing the seeds of these two plants with those of the
morning glory varieties Pearly Gates and Heavenly Blue, they found the
following yield of alkaloids (mg of alkaloid/g of seed material):

     Heavenly Blue        0.813
     Pearly Gates         0.423
     I. tuberosa          [None]
     A. nervosa           3.050

The seed of A. nervosa is the best plant source of ergoline alkaloids
discovered; it contains approximately 3 mg of alkaloidal material per gram of
seed. Approximately one-eighth of this is lysergamide. 

Hylin and Watson found the major alkaloidal constituents in A. nervosa seeds to
be ergine (780 mcg/g of fresh seed) and isoergine and penniclavine (555 mcg).

[Note: Argyreia nervosa has NO history of shamanic use as a hallucinogen]