![]() caapi have been considered to play a minor role in the overall pharmacology of ayahuasca preparations. With the resurgence of research on psychedelics 13, the β-carbolines of B. Remarkably, clinical improvement was maintained for up to three weeks. ![]() Two recent studies found that a single dose of ayahuasca rapidly reduced depressive symptoms in treatment-resistant patients 11, 12. This expansion and reports of health benefits derived from its use have stimulated research into the pharmacology and therapeutic potential of ayahuasca 10. viridis, due to the visionary effects induced by DMT, a psychedelic serotonin-2A agonist 9. In recent years, non-traditional use of ayahuasca has expanded worldwide, especially the version of the tea that combines B. These plants contain a wide variety of psychotropic substances such as nicotine (from Nicotiana spp.), scopolamine (from Brugmansia spp.), caffeine (from Ilex guayusa and Paullinia yoco), cocaine (from Erythoxylum coca) and N, N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT, from Psychotria viridis and Diplopterys cabrerana) 2, 8. caapi can be the sole ingredient of the tea 7, up to 100 different plants have been described as admixtures to ayahuasca. These alkaloids are reversible monoamine-oxidase-A (MAO-A) inhibitors 5, while THH can also inhibit serotonin reuptake 6. ![]() caapi contains high amounts of harmine and tetrahydroharmine (THH) and to a lesser degree harmaline, three indole alkaloids with β-carboline structure 4. These so-called “ayahuasca religions” have popularized ayahuasca use with the expansion of their activities to North America and Europe 3.Īyahuasca has a complex chemistry and pharmacology. ![]() More recently, ayahuasca has become a central sacrament in the rituals of Brazilian syncretic religious groups. The ayahuasca tea is a central element in the ancient shamanic practices and rites of passage of the indigenous inhabitants of northwestern South America. caapi, alone or in combination with other plants 2. The term is also applied to the tea that is obtained by infusing in water the stems of B. caapi alkaloids to other brain disorders that may benefit from stimulation of endogenous neural precursor niches.Īyahuasca is the Quechua name used to designate Banisteriopsis caapi, a jungle liana of the Malpighiaceae family that is native to the Amazon and Orinoco river basins 1. They also expand the potential application of B. ![]() These findings suggest that modulation of brain plasticity could be a major contribution to the antidepressant effects of ayahuasca. In neurospheres prepared from progenitor cells obtained from the subventricular and the subgranular zones of adult mice brains, all compounds stimulated neural stem cell proliferation, migration, and differentiation into adult neurons. caapi, and the harmine metabolite harmol, stimulate adult neurogenesis in vitro. Here we report that harmine, tetrahydroharmine and harmaline, the three main alkaloids present in B. caapi preparations show antidepressant activity, a therapeutic effect that has been linked to hippocampal neurogenesis. Animal studies and recent clinical research suggests that B. Banisteriopsis caapi is the basic ingredient of ayahuasca, a psychotropic plant tea used in the Amazon for ritual and medicinal purposes, and by interested individuals worldwide. ![]()
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