Anyone here try Huperzine A?
TheMachine1
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huperzine_A
I tried 200 mcg for the first time a few hours ago and I'm starting to have strange effects from it. Such as my typical stimming is mostly leg movements and I'm getting micro-movements in various places in my body. I want to lightly tap my teeth together. Touch my finger tips to each other. Basically large muscle group large movements have been replaced by small muscle group micro-movements.
Anyway I'm taking huperzine A to improve working memory. Will report more on it later.
richardbenson
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I've tried it, though not by itself and I forget how much. My stims are subtle and often would leave me wondering if I had any. Oddly, the only thing that gave me an odd effect, and I never had that effect before, was GABA. It made my brain tingle! NOT a bad feeling, even pleasant, but disconcerting non the less.
It wouldn't first come to mind that I would try it because my guess is that it has stimulant-like properties. I, usually, am not interested in anything that is involved with the stimulation of NE or the glutamine sensitive receptors.
I don't mean to change the subject or anything but chemical reactions and chemistry is something that I might want to learn in college someday.
2ukenkerl, GABA is a vasodialator(The tingling and face-flush sensation I beleive is from its ability to release prostoglandins), is said to have weak penetration through the blood-brain barrier but can affect the peripherial nervous system, and has metabolic pathways that can lead to the break-down of its structure into succinate acid + something else.
KingdomOfRats
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is that the same thing as gabapentin? have had that one before and it's effects are bad.
TheMachine1
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Does not seem to have classical stimulant action to me. It
improved my sleep greatly to. I took a second 200 mcg
dose several hours later . It made me have strange vivid
dreams which is usually something I experience when
starting or stopping a drug that effects mental processing.
I'm feeling no real negative effects and I'm getting some real
hints that it has infact improved working memory. I can do
some spatial manipulations in my head alot easier which has
help with 3-d modeling.
KingdomOfRats, it is not the same as Gabapentin. GABA is an amino-acid and an inhibitory neurotransmitter. GABA is sold as a supplement.
Gabapentin is a modification of the structure of GABA and, therefore, its called a "GABA derivative". It is, an essence, synthetic i.e man-made chemical.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabapentin
Gabapentin has a site of action at the voltage-gated N-type calcium ion channels but its mechanism of action is unknown.
TheMachine1
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The abstract below mentions a potential problem. The low half-life and "U" shaped response curve may make taking the medication difficult. I think I will break the tablets in to segments and take them every few hours.
Links
Prolonged effects of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) microsphere-containing huperzine A on mouse memory dysfunction induced by scopolamine.
Wang C, Zhang T, Ma H, Liu J, Fu F, Liu K.
Xi'an Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Huperzine A is an anticholinesterase and cognitive enhancer, which is able to alleviate the symptoms of memory dysfunction in the mouse. The fast metabolization rate and narrow therapeutic spectrum makes it unfit for clinical use. Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) microsphere as delivery system effectively maintains the blood concentration of huperzine A by a slow-release effect over a long time. In the present article, we investigated the prolonged protective effect of microsphere-containing huperzine A on memory dysfunction induced by scopolamine. Spectrophotometric assay was used to determine the activity of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and passive avoidance tests to evaluate memory performance. The results show that a bolus dose of microsphere-containing huperzine A (at a dose of 300 microg/kg or 600 microg/kg) administered intramuscularly can effectively maintain drug activity and significantly decrease the activity of AChE from day 3 to 14, the strongest effect seen on day 3 and 7. Accompanying the reduction of the activity of AChE, microsphere-containing huperzine A (300 microg/kg or 600 microg/kg) remarkably increased transfer latency time and no transfer response on the second trial through mitigating the memory impairments induced by scopolamine as compared to the scopolamine model group. Microsphere-containing huperzine A showed cognitive enhancing properties and anticholinesterase activity and may thus be a candidate for treatment of memory impairment.
PMID: 17309523 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Cool I found this.
update
Seems to be some major sleep inducing taking effect and more vivid dreams. I'm fairly certain where a new super highway will be built at a location disclosed in my dream. Perhaps I should buy all the good frontage land on margin.

I'm now just started trying an experiment of adding 4 mg of nicotine gum to the huperzine a.
http://otl.georgetown.edu/industry/inve ... 26524.html
Hey Tm1 you aren't really leaving
Please
I have really bad executive functioning problems & while I generally recommend
'Say no to drugs,kids' I'm a hypocrite
& I recognise that medication can be life-saving
I get lost in 'streams of consciouness',compose beautiful lyrical stuff
& then can't remember the begining or the initiation
I'm only going to try this stuff on your recomendation
So where do I get it here in Aus.?
A pharmicist or back to the psychiatrist?
Do you have a link to a site on the net?
I found this:
Huperzine A has potent pharmacological effects and, particularly since long-term safety has not been determined,it should only be used with medical supervision. It may have some effectiveness in Alzheimer's disease and age-related memory impairment. It has been used to treat fever and some inflammatory disorders, but there is no credible scientific evidence to support these uses.
In one double-blind, randomized study, huperzine A, in injectable form, was tested against a saline control in 56 patients with multi-infarct dementia or senile dementia and in 104 patients with senile and pre-senile simple memory disorders. Huperzine A produced significant positive effects as measured by the Wechsler Memory Scale. Dizziness was experienced by a few of the huperzine A-treated patients.
In another study, this one multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled and randomized, 50 subjects with Alzheimer's disease were given huperzine A or placebo for eight weeks. Significant improvement was noted in 58 percent of the patients in terms of memory, cognitive and behavioral functions. Research is ongoing.
CONTRAINDICATIONS, PRECAUTIONS, ADVERSE REACTIONS
CONTRAINDICATIONS
None known.
PRECAUTIONS
Huperzine A should be avoided by children, pregnant women and nursing mothers.
I don't like the sound of this:
ADVERSE REACTIONS
Adverse effects reported with huperzine A include gastrointestinal effects, such as nausea and diarrhea, sweating, blurred vision, fasciculations and dizziness. Possible adverse effects include vomiting, cramping, bronchospasm, bradycardia, arrhythmias, seizures, urinary incontinence, increased urination and hypersalivation.
All from here:
http://www.pdrhealth.com/drug_info/nmdr ... 0141.shtml
Should I get on the drugs merry-go-round?
I don't know
I don't know
I don't know
_________________
Be kinder than necessary for everyone is fighting some kind of battle
-Jaleb
>while I generally recommend
>'Say no to drugs,kids' I'm a hypocrite
>& I recognise that medication can be life-saving
One helpful thing to remember through this kind of struggle is setting goals. Without goals, our lives can seem to be just pointless. In addition, there should be satisfying relationships: not people that just smother you with their opinions of you.
So whats life-saving about drugs if drugs were made to look more superior than what I have explained above in this message?
TheMachine1
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