II. NMDA Antagonist Properties of Ibogaine.................................................................. III. Are the NMDA Antagonist Properties of Ibogaine Relevant to its Putative

Beginning in the mid 1980s, Howard Lotsoff (1-4) filed a series of patents claiming that ibogaine, an alkaloid derived from Tabernanthe iboga, possessed antiaddictive qualities. At the time, the concept that a single molecule could treat dependence across classes of abused drugs (e.g., cocaine, nicotine, ethanol, opiates) was viewed as radical, if not revolutionary. In the absence of rigorously controlled, double-blind clinical trials, these claims have engendered skepticism and controversy. During the past 5 to 7 years, the biomedical research community has made a concerted effort to characterize the neurochemical actions of ibogaine with the implicit understanding that such studies may provide insight into the putative antiaddictive actions of this compound. In parallel with these neurochemical studies, preclinical behavioral studies have established that ibogaine can interfere with tolerance and dependence phenomena (reviewed in reference 5). If the dictum, “Clinical data trumps preclinical data ” has merit, then the pragmatist may legitimately question the value of such preclinical studies in th