5-MeO-DMT has not been found in traditional ayahuasca preparations and the combination of 5-MeO-DMT with MAOIs is dangerous

Abstract

I was concerned to read the section about 5‐MeO‐DMT in the published article entitled “N,N‐dimethyltryptamine and Amazonian ayahuasca plant medicine” (James et al., 2022). In particular, the mention of 5‐MeO‐DMT as being part of ayahuasca brews. There is no significant chemical evidence of 5‐MeO‐DMT being present in ayahuasca admixture plants. One of the plants that is commonly cited as containing 5‐MeO‐DMT is chaliponga or Diplopterys cabernara, but recent chemical analyses have shown that it instead contains high concentrations of N,N‐dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and N‐methyltryptamine (Diplopterys Cabrerana ‐ DMT‐Nexus Wiki, n.d.). The misinformation that 5‐MeO‐DMT is present in ayahuasca brews is dangerous, because there is a toxic interaction between 5‐MeO‐DMT and harmala alkaloids, such as those found in the B. Caapi vine (Shen et al., 2010). James et al., 2022 cite a paper by Riga et al., 2014 which, in its title, names 5‐MeO‐DMT as a component of ayahuasca brews. Although Riga et al., 2014 makes this claim in the title and in the introductory sentence, the article is not about the analysis of ayahuasca but rather is a study about the effects of 5‐MeO‐DMT on cortical function. In the introduction of the paper, they provide some references which supposedly provide evidence of 5‐MeO‐DMT being a constituent in ayahuasca brews. However, none of the articles that they provide as references do so. In turn, the references that Riga et al., 2014 provide as primary sources for that assertion are the following: McKenna, D. J., Towers, G. H. N., & Abbott, F. (1984). Monoamine oxidase inhibitors in South American hallucinogenic plants: Tryptamine and β‐carboline constituents of Ayahuasca. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 10(2), 195–223. https://doi.org/10.1016/0378‐8741 (84)90003‐5 and McKenna, D. J. (2004). Clinical investigations of the therapeutic potential of ayahuasca: Rationale and regulatory challenges. Pharmacology & Therapeutics, 102(2), 111–129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. pharmthera.2004.03.002 McKenna et al., 1984 make no mention of 5‐MeO‐DMT as being a constituent of any of the brews they analyzed. The only possibly similar mention in that article is the statement “A single sample of Diplopterys cabrerana (Plowman 6040), the Malpighiaceous admixture, was available for analysis and this also contained DMT together with an extremely trace amount of 5‐hydroxy‐DMT” (McKenna et al., 1984). Note that they write “extremely trace amount”, and in addition notice that they are describing 5‐HO‐ DMT, which is also known as bufotenine, which is not 5‐MeO‐ DMT. McKenna, 2004 is an article about the regulatory challenges of studying ayahuasca for clinical applications. It does not describe 5‐MeO‐DMT as a constituent of ayahuasca brews. Riga et al., 2014 provide Schultes & Hofmann, 1991 as another reference for 5‐MeO‐DMT being found in ayahuasca brews, but that reference is a book entitled “The botany and chemistry of hallucinogens” that is a general overview of naturally occurring hallucinogens, and having the book I can say with certainty that nowhere in the book is there mention of the presence of 5‐MeO‐DMT in ayahuasca preparations. As is apparent, none of these articles provide evidence of 5‐MeO‐DMT being in ayahuasca brews. Furthermore, spreading information that 5‐MeO‐DMT is commonly combined with harmala alkaloids is culturally inaccurate and potentially harmful information,