Ritualistic Use of Ayahuasca versus Street Use of Similar Substances Seized by the Police: A Key Factor Involved in the Potential for Intoxications and Overdose?

AbstractThe ritualistic use of ayahuasca is becoming a global phenomenon. This beverage contains a combination of monoamine oxidase inhibitors (harmine, harmaline, and tetrahydroharmine) and N,N-dimethyltryptamine, the main substance responsible for its visionary effect. The recreational use of similar alkaloids and N,N-dimethyltryptamine has increased in recent years, mainly because of their hallucinogenic effects. In the present study, the concentrations of psychoactive alkaloids in three powder samples seized by the Sao Paulo State Police and nine ayahuasca aqueous extracts were analyzed by HPLC-DAD in an attempt to distinguish between illicit drugs and the religious beverage. The alkaloids detected (μg/mL) in the ayahuasca aqueous extracts were N,N-dimethyltryptamine (402–2070.3), harmaline (27.5–181.3), harmine (294.5–2893.8), and tetrahydroharmine (849.5–2052.5), whereas, of the three powder samples, one contained only N,N-dimethyltryptamine (82% and 2% w/w, respectively) while the other contained o...