Behavioural and neurotoxic effects of ayahuasca infusion (Banisteriopsis caapi and Psychotria viridis) in female Wistar rat

Pic‐Taylor, Aline; Motta, Luciana Gueiros da; Morais, Juliana Alves de; Melo, Willian; Santos, Alana de Fátima Andrade; Campos, Leandro Ambrósio; Mortari, Márcia Renata; Zuben, Marcus Vinicius von; Caldas, Eloísa Dutra

doi:10.1016/j.beproc.2015.05.004

Cited by 79 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…Oral dosing of DMT via ayahuasca produces both behavioral and neurochemical effects, such as decreases in motor activity (Pic-Taylor et al, 2015), impairment of cognitive function (Alonso et al, 2015; Bouso et al, 2013), sympathomimetic effects, increased prolactin and cortisol levels, and decreased lymphocytes increased natural killer cells (Dos Santos, et al, 2011). Doses of ayahuasca 15 or 30-fold higher than commonly used ritual doses increased serotonergic neurotransmission (Pic-Taylor et al, 2015).…”

Section: Pharmacodynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Neuropharmacology of N,N-dimethyltryptamine

Carbonaro

Gatch

2016

Brain Research Bulletin

143

152

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N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) is an indole alkaloid widely found in plants and animals. It is best known for producing brief and intense psychedelic effects when ingested. Increasing evidence suggests that endogenous DMT plays important roles for a number of processes in the periphery and central nervous system, and may act as a neurotransmitter. This paper reviews the current literature of both the recreational use of DMT and its potential roles as an endogenous neurotransmitter. Pharmacokinetics, mechanisms of action in the periphery and central nervous system, clinical uses and adverse effects are also reviewed. DMT appears to have limited neurotoxicity and other adverse effects except for intense cardiovascular effects when administered intravenously in large doses. Because of its role in nervous system signaling, DMT may be a useful experimental tool in exploring how brain works, and may also be a useful clinical tool for treatment of anxiety and psychosis.

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Section: Pharmacodynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Neuropharmacology of N,N-dimethyltryptamine

Carbonaro

Gatch

2016

Brain Research Bulletin

143

152

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“…8 The" ayahuasca" tea usually incorporates the leaves of P. viridis and bark of Banisteriopsis caapi, which are rich in N,N-dimethyltryptamine (a non-selective serotonin agonist, 5-HT) and β-carboline alkaloids, respectively. [32][33][34] A qualitative empirical study made by Anja and Rolf 35 explored the ritual use of "ayahuasca" in the treatment of addictions. The recently findings indicate that "ayahuasca" can serve as a therapeutic tool which catalyze neurological and psychological processes that support recovery from substance dependencies.…”

Section: Traditional Uses Of Psychotria Speciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The GenusPsychotria: Phytochemistry, Chemotaxonomy, Ethnopharmacology and Biological Properties

Calixto¹,

Pinto²,

Ramalho³

et al. 2016

Journal of the Brazilian Chemical Society

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Psychotria genus (Rubiaceae) is featured into the angiosperm, being the most speciose genus comprising approximately 1600 species. The available references demonstrate that Psychotria has several uses on traditional medicine including spiritual and cultural purposes, and presents great potential on pharmacological properties, especially the one related to neurodegenerative diseases. Despite its wide biological properties, this genus has shown complex phylogenetic analysis due to lack of chemotaxonomic information. In recent years, the interest in these plants has increased considerably and many active compounds have been isolated. Phytochemical investigations described in the literature confirmed the indole alkaloids as the major compounds and besides that, another particular chemical constituent are cyclic peptides, known as cyclotides. This present review will cover the relevant literature from 1962 until 2015, and outlines the current data on taxonomy, chemotaxonomy, traditional uses, pharmacological properties, chemical composition and ecological approach from Psychotria genus.

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“…It is known that hyperactivity and anxiety-like behavior are highly correlated in zebrafish (Kalueff et al, 2013), which seems to be the case of the chronic Ayahuasca groups. The continued combination of DMT and harmaline induces to excessive activation of the serotonergic system, possibly leading to a state of 5-HT toxicity (Pic-Taylor et al, 2015). …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Studies applying Ayahuasca to animal models have argued that chronic exposure may provoke toxic and cognitive-impairment effects, such as neuronal loss (Figueroa, 2012; Pic-Taylor et al, 2015) and increased serotonergic activity that induces neurodegeneration (Jiang et al, 2015). The zebrafish ( Danio rerio ) has attracted scientific attention in recent years, and is at the forefront of developmental biology studies (Grunwald and Eisen, 2002; Kalueff et al, 2014), in addition to being a promising model in predictive validation for drug research (Gerlai et al, 2000; Rico et al, 2007; Luchiari and Chacon, 2013; Chacon and Luchiari, 2014; Sterling et al, 2015; Santos et al, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

It’s Tea Time: Interference of Ayahuasca Brew on Discriminative Learning in Zebrafish

Lobão-Soares

Eduardo-da-Silva

Amarilha

et al. 2018

Front. Behav. Neurosci.

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Ayahuasca is a psychoactive brew traditionally used in shamanistic and vegetalistic rituals and has recently received lot of attention due to potential cognitive benefits. Ayahuasca effects are caused by the synergistic interaction of β-carbolines (harmine, harmaline and tetrahydroarmine) contained in Banisteriopsis caapi stalks combined with the N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) from Psychotria viridis leaves, a potent agonist to serotonin (5-HT) receptors. The present study approaches the effects of chronic and acute exposure to two Ayahuasca concentrations (0.1 and 0.5 ml/L) on the cognitive ability to discriminate objects in a one-trial learning task in zebrafish. Based on the combination of concentrations and exposure regimens, we divided adult zebrafish in five treatment groups: acute 0.1 and 0.5 ml/L, chronic 0.1 and 0.5 ml/L, and control 0.0 (n = 20 for each group). Then we tested them in a memory task of object discrimination. Acute Ayahuasca exposed groups performed similarly to the control group, however chronically treated fish (13 days) presented both impaired discriminative performance and locomotor alterations. Overall, these results indicate that Ayahuasca is a potent psychoactive drug that, in chronic exposure, negatively affects mnemonic parameters in zebrafish. In single exposure it does not affects cognitive performance, but the higher concentration (0.5) affected locomotion. Moreover, we reinforce the importance of the zebrafish for behavioral pharmacological studies of drug screening, in special to psychedelic drug research.

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Behavioural and neurotoxic effects of ayahuasca infusion (Banisteriopsis caapi and Psychotria viridis) in female Wistar rat

Cited by 79 publications

References 51 publications

Neuropharmacology of N,N-dimethyltryptamine

Neuropharmacology of N,N-dimethyltryptamine

The GenusPsychotria: Phytochemistry, Chemotaxonomy, Ethnopharmacology and Biological Properties

It’s Tea Time: Interference of Ayahuasca Brew on Discriminative Learning in Zebrafish

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