sometimes promoted as a legal psychotropic. The seed of ordinary lettuce, Lactuca sativa, is still used in Avicenna's native Iran as a folk medicine. Chemical constituents The chemical constituents of lactucarium that have been investigated for biological activity include lactucin and its derivatives lactucopicrin and 11β,13-dihydrolactucin. Lactucin and lactucopicrin were found to have analgesic effects comparable to those of ibuprofen, and sedative activity in measurements of spontaneous movements of the mice. Some effects have also been credited to a trace of hyoscyamine in Lactuca virosa, but the alkaloid was undetectable in standard lactucarium. A crude extract of the seeds was shown to have analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects in standard formalin and carrageenan tests of laboratory rats. It was not toxic to the rats at a dose of 6 grams per kilogram. Lactuca virosa contains flavonoids, coumarins, and N-methyl-β-phenethylamine. A variety of other chemical compounds have been isolated from L. virosa. One of the compounds, lactucin, is an adenosine receptor agonist in vitro, while another, lactucopicrin, has been shown to act as an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor in vitro. Lactuca floridana was found to contain 11β,13-Dihydro-lactucin-8-O-acetate hemihydrate. Formulations Lactucarium was used unmodified in lozenges, 30–60 milligrams (0.5 to 1 grain), sometimes mixed with borax. However, it was found to be more efficient to formulate the drug in a cough syrup (Syrupus Lactucarii, U.S.P.) containing net 5% lactucarium, 22% glycerin, 5% alcohol, and 5% orange-flower water in syrup. References Analgesics Sedatives Euphoriants Medicinal plants Lactuca