Ayahuasca as a Decoction Applied to Human: Analytical Methods, Pharmacology and Potential Toxic Effects

Abstract

Ahyahuasca is a term commonly used to describe a decoction prepared by cooking the bark or crushed stems of the liana Banisteriopsis caapi (contains β-carbolines) alone or in combination with other plants, most commonly leaves of the shrub Psychotria viridis (contains N,N-dimethyltryptamine-DMT). More than 100 different plants can serve as sources of β-carbolines and DMT, which are the active alkaloids of this decoction, and therefore it is important to know the most accurate composition of the decoction, especially when studying the pharmacology of this plant. The aim was to summarize the latest sensitive methods used in the analysis of the composition of the beverage itself and the analysis of various biological matrices. We compared pharmacokinetic parameters in all of the studies where decoction of ayahuasca was administered and where its composition was known, whereby minimal adverse effects were observed. The therapeutic benefit of this plant is still unclear in the scientific literature, and side effects occur probably on the basis of pre-existing psychiatric disorder. We also described toxicological risks and clinical benefits of ayahuasca intake, which meant that the concentrations of active alkaloids in the decoction or in the organism, often not determined in publications, were required for sufficient evaluation of its effect on the organism. We did not find any post-mortem study, in which the toxicological examination of biological materials together with the autopsy findings would suggest potential lethality of this plant.