Ergot Alkaloids: History, Chemistry, and Therapeutic Uses - English translation of Albert Hofmann’s encyclopedia on ergot compounds

Ergot Alkaloids: History, Chemistry, and Therapeutic Uses presents an English translation of Albert Hofmann’s historic encyclopedia focused on ergot mushroom chemistry and medicinal investigation. The book traces ergot from botany and cultivation through historical developments, including the ergot poisoning epidemic and early medical uses, and then into later pharmaceutical-chemical research. It highlights chemical and pharmacological pathways tied to lysergic acid, lysergic acid derivatives, and key compounds such as ergotamine across the 1816 to 1961 timeline. It frames ergot and related visionary plant compounds within both scientific and cultural contexts, linking research trajectories to experimental psychiatry and increasing psychotherapy relevance. The description also positions the work as a synthesis of more than 30 chemical structures and pharmaceutical analysis, connecting ergot derivatives to broader categories of hallucinogenic or “phantastica” substances.