Maternal and developmental toxicity of ayahuasca in Wistar rats
Carolina Dizioli Rodrigues de Oliveira, Camila Queiroz Moreira, Lílian Rose Marques de Sá, Helenice de Souza Spinosa, Maurı́cio Yonamine
Birth Defects Research Part B Developmental and Reproductive Toxicology May 11, 2010 DOI: 10.1002/bdrb.20244 via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractAyahuasca, a psychotropic plant beverage used in traditional and modern religious ceremonies, was tested for developmental toxicity in pregnant Wistar rats. Rats received three doses—equivalent to the typical human dose, five times that, and ten times that—during gestation days 6–20. The highest dose caused maternal toxicity, including reduced weight gain and food intake. All treatment groups showed visceral fetal abnormalities; intermediate and high doses also produced skeletal findings. Fetuses from the highest dose group had lower body weight. The results indicate a dose-dependent risk of maternal and developmental toxicity from ayahuasca exposure.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Animal experiment Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Pregnant Wistar rats |
| Intervention | Ayahuasca |
| Dose | equivalent typical dose (TD) administered to humans, five-fold TD and 10-fold TD |
| Duration | Gestational period (6–20 days) |
| Topics | Ayahuasca |
| Keywords | Developmental toxicity Fetus Physiology Gestation |
| Citations | 44 |
| Key finding | Ayahuasca exposure during gestation caused dose-dependent maternal and developmental toxicity in rats, including reduced maternal weight gain, fetal visceral and skeletal abnormalities, and decreased fetal body weight at the highest dose. |
Abstract
Abstract INTRODUCTION: Ayahuasca is a psychotropic plant beverage initially used by shamans throughout the Amazon region during traditional religious cult. In recent years, ayahuasca has also been used in ceremonies of a number of modern syncretic religious groups, including pregnant women. However, no documented study has been performed to evaluate the risk of developmental toxicity of ayahuasca. METHODS: In the present work, maternal and developmental toxicity was evaluated in Wistar rats. Ayahuasca was administered to pregnant rats in three different doses [the equivalent typical dose (TD) administered to humans, five‐fold TD and 10‐fold TD] during the gestational period (6–20 days). RESULTS: Dams treated with the highest ayahuasca dose showed maternal toxicity with decrease of weight gain and food intake. Visceral fetal findings were observed in all treatment groups. Skeletal findings were observed in the intermediate‐ and high‐dose groups. The fetuses deriving from the highest dose group also presented a decrease in body weight. CONCLUSIONS: From these results, it is possible to conclude that there is a risk of maternal and developmental toxicity following ayahuasca exposure and that the level of toxicity appears to be dose‐dependent. Birth Defects Res (Part B) 89:207–212, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.