Ayahuasca is a traditional plant decoction containing N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and various β-carbolines including harmine, harmaline, and tetrahydroharmine, which has been used ceremonially by Amazonian Indigenous groups for healing and spiritual purposes. Use of the brew has now spread far beyond its original context of consumption to North America, Europe, and Australia in neo-shamanic...
Abstract Background The recognition of emotions in facial expressions (REFE) is a core aspect of social cognition. Previous studies with the serotonergic hallucinogens lysergic acid diethylamide and psilocybin showed that these drugs reduced the recognition of negative (fear) faces in healthy volunteers. This trial assessed the acute and prolonged effects of a single dose of ayahuasca on the...
Psychedelics or serotonergic hallucinogens are a group of substances that share the agonism of serotonergic 5-HT2A receptors as their main mechanism of action. Its main effects include changes in perception, cognitive process, and mood. Despite being used for centuries by different cultures in ritual contexts, these substances have currently aroused the interest of science and industry for...
Background\nAyahuasca is a psychoactive Amazonian brew which has emerging data indicating that it has antidepressant and anxiolytic properties.\n\nMethods\nThis paper uses data from the Global Ayahuasca Project (GAP), which was undertaken across 2017-2020 and involved 11912 people, to examine the perceived effects of ayahuasca consumption on affective symptoms. The study focused on the...
The volume of research on the therapeutic use of psychedelic drugs has been increasing during the last decades. Partly because of the need of innovative treatments in psychiatry, several studies have assessed the safety and efficacy of drugs like psilocybin or ayahuasca for a wide range of mental disorders, including major depression. The first section of this chapter will offer an introduction...
A minority of participants reported being very negatively affected by persistent adverse effects. Psychiatric medication use while participating in ayahuasca rituals was not associated with increased adverse effects. For the most part, the institution's practices seem sufficient to prevent exacerbated reactions. Future studies may focus on negatively affected users.
Research with psychedelic drugs has mainly focused on isolated compounds. However, this approach is challenged by the "polypharmacology" paradigm. In this Viewpoint, we suggest that we may be missing something if we do not use the whole product in the case of ayahuasca or Psilocybe mushrooms. After describing how research on psychedelic drugs can be effectively combined with the...
Microdosing psychedelic drugs-that is, taking sub-behavioral doses of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) or psilocybin-is a growing practice in Western societies. Taken mainly for creative or mood-enhancing purposes, thousands of users are increasingly being exposed to (micro)doses of psychedelic drugs. In this systematic review, we searched the available evidence from human studies, focusing our...
The field of psychiatry is facing unprecedented challenges. Despite recent important innovations, several mental disorders continue to lack effective treatment. After briefly exploring some of the current challenges, we suggest that the therapeutic use of psychedelic drugs in psychotherapeutic settings represents a promising and integrative treatment with enduring effects for mental health...
Background: Therapeutic properties of ibogaine in the treatment of addiction are attracting both clinicians and patients to its use. Since ibogaine is not an authorized medicine, the quality of these products is not always known, increasing the probability of adverse reactions. Objective: This study collects different types of iboga-derived samples from treatment providers, vendors and online...
Abstract Ayahuasca is a hallucinogenic decoction used as a traditional medicine in several Amazonian regions. The ritualistic use of ayahuasca has spread throughout many countries, making it necessary to study its risks and benefits. Two sub-studies were designed for this investigation. In sub-study 1, a psychiatric interview and a battery of questionnaires were administered to subjects (n =...
Abstract Ibogaine is the most abundant alkaloid present in the African shrub Tabernanthe iboga . As a result of the lack of research on the acute subjective effects, the purpose of this study was to identify categories of the ibogaine experience and gain a better understanding of the internal processes while under its effects. We created a semistructured interview and recruited twenty...
Abstract Rationale Recent studies have assessed the therapeutic potential of ayahuasca for the treatment of depression with promising preliminary results . Objectives Here, we examine the course of grief over 1 year of follow-up in a bereaved sample that attended a center in Peru to participate in indigenous Shipibo ayahuasca ceremonies. We also explore the roles of experiential avoidance and...
In the drug development, the formation of highly selective ligands has been unsuccessful in the treatment of central nervous system disorders. Multi-target ligands, from the polypharmacology paradigm, are being proposed as treatments for these complex disorders, since they offer enhanced efficacy and a strong safety profile. Natural products are the best examples of multi-target compounds, so...
In a recent issue of the BMC Psychiatry, the evidence of effectiveness of treatments for psychiatric conditions in end-stage cancer patients was reviewed (Johnson, 2018). The review was comprehensive, and included traditional and non-traditional/alternative treatments, including herbal medicines and spirituality. However, evidence showing that classic or serotonergic hallucinogens/psychedelics...
In recent years, the use of natural psychoactive drugs (NPDs) has grown rapidly. They are classified as new psychoactive substances (NPSs), despite the reality that they have been used for centuries. We are lacking information regarding patterns of use or characteristics of users, but some evidence suggests that NPDs substantially differ from NPSs in terms of both their safety profile and...
Assessing the health status of ayahuasca users has been challenging due to the limitations involved in randomized clinical trials and psychometric approaches. The main objective of this study is the implementation of an approach based on public health indicators. We developed a self-administered questionnaire that was administered to long-term ayahuasca users around Spain. The questionnaire was...
The current crisis in psychopharmacology has a long history and needs to be addressed with innovative and effective strategies. Here we discuss some of the roots of this crisis and suggest that the therapeutic use of psychedelic drugs represents a promising and integrative treatment with enduring effects for mental health problems.
Background: Recognition of emotions in facial expressions (REFE) is a key aspect of social cognition. Anxiety and mood disorders are associated with deficits in REFE, and anxiolytics and antidepressants reverse these deficits. Recent studies have shown that serotonergic hallucinogens (i.e. ayahuasca, dimethyltryptamine, psilocybin, lysergic acid diethylamide [LSD], and mescaline) have...
Mood, anxiety, and substance-use disorders are among the most prevalent psychiatric disorders in the population. Although several pharmacological treatments are available, they are not effective for a significant proportion of patients and are associated with several adverse reactions. Therefore, new treatments should be explored. Recent studies suggest that serotonergic...
Aphantasia ("blind imagination") is a poorly described condition with an uncertain etiology, characterized by reduced or lack of voluntary visual imagery. Preliminary evidence in humans suggests that hallucinogenic or psychedelic drugs that act as agonists of cortical 5-HT2A receptors [lysergic acid diethylamide, psilocybin, and dimethyltryptamine (DMT)] enhance visual imagery. Interview and...
In the past decade, an increasing number of clinical trials are reporting evidence that psychedelics or serotonergic hallucinogens (such as lysergic acid diethylamide, psilocybin, and ayahuasca/dimethyltryptamine) could be effective in the treatment of mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders. The mechanisms responsible for these effects are not fully understood but seem to involve changes in...
Ayahuasca is a psychedelic decoction originating from Amazonia. The ayahuasca-induced introspective experience has been shown to have potential benefits in the treatment of several pathologies, to protect mental health and to improve neuropsychological functions and creativity, and boost mindfulness. The underlying psychological processes related to the use of ayahuasca in a psychotherapeutic...
Serotonergic psychedelics act as agonists at cortical 5-HT2A receptors and seem to induce personality changes. We conducted a systematic review of studies assessing the effects of these drugs on personality. Papers published from 1985-2016 were included from PubMed, LILACS, and SciELO databases. Three hundred and sixty-nine studies were identified, and 18 were included. Specific personality...
Abstract Background Ayahuasca is a psychoactive ethnobotanical concoction that has been used for decades by indigenous groups of the Northwestern Amazon and by syncretic religious organizations for ritual and therapeutic purposes. In the last two decades, it is being used worldwide in evolving practices. Ayahuasca seem to therapeutic effects, but controlled studies are lacking. Moreover, its...