Scientific reports
October 9, 2017
Vanja Dakic, Juliana Minardi Nascimento, Rafaela Costa Sartore et al.
137 citations
5-MeO-DMT, a serotonin-like molecule found in traditional Amerindian medicine, alters the protein landscape of human cerebral organoids. Out of 6,728 identified proteins, 934 were differentially expressed after treatment. Computational analysis confirmed previously reported anti-inflammatory effects and revealed modulation of proteins involved in long-term potentiation, dendritic spine formation, cellular protrusion, microtubule dynamics, and cytoskeletal reorganization. These findings provide initial molecular insights into how this compound may affect human brain metabolism.
PeerJ
December 6, 2016
Vanja Dakic, Renata de Moraes Maciel, Hannah Drummond et al.
86 citations
Harmine, the main alkaloid in Ayahuasca, increased the pool of proliferating human neural progenitor cells by 71.5% after four days of treatment. Testing harmine analogs showed that a DYRK1A inhibitor (INDY) but not a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (pargyline) similarly boosted proliferation, suggesting harmine acts through DYRK1A inhibition. This mechanism may underlie both harmine's effects on neural cell growth and its reported antidepressant effects.
April 14, 2016
Vanja Dakic, Renata de Moraes Maciel, Hannah Drummond et al.
1 citation
Harmine, a β-carboline alkaloid found in the psychotropic plant decoction Ayahuasca, increased the pool of proliferating human neural progenitor cells (hNPCs) by 57% after 4 days of treatment. The effect appears to be mediated through inhibition of the DYRK1A enzyme, as an analog that inhibits DYRK1A (INDY) similarly induced proliferation, while an inhibitor of monoamine oxidase (pargyline) did not. Harmine also increased dendritic arborization, including total neurite length, number of segments, extremities, and nodes in MAP2-positive neurons. These findings suggest a biological activity that may contribute to the antidepressant effects observed with Ayahuasca.
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
February 13, 2017
Vanja Dakic, Juliana Nascimento, Rafaela Sartore et al.
preprint
5-MeO-DMT, a hallucinogenic molecule found in traditional Amerindian medicine, alters the proteome of human cerebral organoids. Of 6,728 identified proteins, 934 were differentially expressed after treatment. Systems biology analyses indicate anti-inflammatory effects and modulation of proteins linked to long-term potentiation, dendritic spine formation, cellular protrusion, microtubule dynamics, and cytoskeletal reorganization. These findings provide mechanistic insights into the neuropsychological changes associated with dimethyltryptamine ingestion.