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

Ayahuasca is a decoction made from the liana Banisteriopsis caapi, which contains β-carbolines, often combined with Psychotria viridis leaves containing DMT. Over 100 plants can supply these active alkaloids, making precise compositional analysis crucial for pharmacological study. This review summarizes sensitive methods for analyzing the beverage and biological matrices, comparing pharmacokinetic parameters across studies with known composition and minimal adverse effects. Therapeutic benefits remain unclear, with side effects possibly linked to pre-existing psychiatric disorders. Toxicological risks and clinical benefits require accurate alkaloid concentrations for evaluation. No post-mortem study has suggested potential lethality from ayahuasca.

Study at a glance

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.