In a small preliminary trial, ayahuasca—with or without a 600 mg dose of cannabidiol (CBD) given 90 minutes beforehand—did not produce interactive effects on emotion recognition or empathy tasks. Both groups showed faster reaction times on these tasks and reported reduced anxiety, sedation, and discomfort, but there were no differences between the group that received CBD and the one that did not. Ayahuasca was well tolerated, causing mainly nausea and gastrointestinal discomfort, with no clinically significant changes in heart or liver measures. The safety of the combination suggests that both drugs could be tested in larger trials for anxiety disorders.
A single oral dose of ibogaine significantly alters gene expression in the frontal cortex of mice four hours after administration. Genes involved in hormonal pathways and synaptogenesis were upregulated, while genes associated with apoptosis and endosomal transport were downregulated. Validation via qPCR did not fully confirm the hormonal pathway changes, possibly due to the specific brain region sampled. Female mice showed more pronounced gene expression changes than males, and high variability was observed across individual animals. These findings advance understanding of ibogaine's molecular actions and highlight sex differences that may influence its effects.