Ayahuasca vine
Banisteriopsis caapi
Also calledAyahuasca · Caapi · Yagé · Hoasca (União do Vegetal, Brazil) · Soul vine
A South American liana, up to 30 m long, that is brewed with the DMT-containing plant Psychotria viridis to make the psychoactive ceremonial drink ayahuasca. Its harmala alkaloids are monoamine-oxidase inhibitors, which makes the DMT active by mouth and also makes the brew dangerous with many medicines. One small placebo-controlled trial suggests rapid antidepressant effects; it is not for home use.
Full natural-history sheet →What it is used for
- Low mood and depressionLimited
In a double-blind trial of 29 people with treatment-resistant depression, one dose of ayahuasca brew reduced depression scores more than placebo at 1, 2 and 7 days (response at day 7: 64% vs 27%). The trial was small and short and was run under clinical supervision.1,2
How it is prepared
decoction
In ceremonial practice the vine is brewed together with leaves of Psychotria viridis. Described for its history only: it is not a home preparation, and no safe self-dosing exists.
Amounts are as recorded by the named source, not a recommendation.
Safety
- Pregnancy
- Contraindicated
- Breastfeeding
- Avoid
- Children
- Not for children.
Interactions with medicines
- SSRIs, SNRIs and other serotonergic psychiatric drugsMajorTheoretical risk of serotonin syndrome with the MAO-inhibiting brew, with extremely rare case reports; clinical protocols exclude people taking these drugs.
- MAO inhibitor drugsMajorExcluded in clinical protocols because the brew is itself an MAO inhibitor.
- tyramine-rich foodsMajorMAO inhibition prevents breakdown of tyramine, which can cause a hypertensive crisis.
Do not use if
- Current or past psychiatric illness, or a family history of psychosis
- Taking antidepressants or other serotonergic drugs
- Pregnancy (abortifacient and teratogenic effects in animal studies)
Side effects
- Nausea and vomiting (common)
- Rise in diastolic blood pressure
- Rarely, psychosis, mainly in people with a psychiatric history or using other drugs
In the healing traditions
- Andean / Amazonian
Ayahuasca / caapi / yagé
Used for centuries by Indigenous South American peoples as a ceremonial brew; 16th-century Spanish and Portuguese explorers described these brews as 'diabolic'.
- Brazilian ayahuasca religions
Hoasca
Taken as a sacrament by the União do Vegetal (UDV) church; the US Supreme Court upheld the UDV's sacramental use in 2006.
- Modern pharmacology
Harmine
Extracts of Banisteriopsis caapi and of Peganum harmala (from which harmine was first isolated) were tried for parkinsonism in the 1920s and 1930s and abandoned as weaker than scopolamine and hyoscine; a 2015 review proposes reconsidering harmine.
Active compounds
- harmine
- β-carboline; MAO-A inhibitor, which lets DMT from the admixture plant act when swallowed
- harmaline
- β-carboline MAO-A inhibitor; showed the most toxicity in animal studies
- tetrahydroharmine
- β-carboline alkaloid of the vine
- epicatechin and procyanidin B2
- polyphenols with antioxidant activity
History
Indigenous South American peoples used the vine for centuries; Spanish and Portuguese explorers described ayahuasca brews in the 16th century, and the English botanist Richard Spruce formally described the species in 1851. In the 1920s and 1930s, extracts of the vine and of harmine were tested against parkinsonism before being dropped in favour of belladonna-type alkaloids.
Sources
- 1.Palhano-Fontes F et al. Rapid antidepressant effects of the psychedelic ayahuasca in treatment-resistant depression: a randomized placebo-controlled trial. Psychol Med 2019
- 2.Palhano-Fontes F et al. Ayahuasca for the treatment of depression. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2022
- 3.White E et al. Ayahuasca and dimethyltryptamine adverse events and toxicity analysis: a systematic thematic review. Int J Toxicol 2024
- 4.Djamshidian A et al. Banisteriopsis caapi, a forgotten potential therapy for Parkinson's disease? Mov Disord Clin Pract 2015
- 5.Gonzales v. O Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal, 546 U.S. 418 (2006)
- 6.Wikipedia: Banisteriopsis caapi (history, patent dispute, legal status)
Reference, not prescription. Nothing here is medical advice. Herbs can interact with medicines and be dangerous in pregnancy; tell your doctor or pharmacist about anything you take.