Gas chromatographic analysis of dimethyltryptamine and beta-carboline alkaloids in ayahuasca, an Amazonian psychoactive plant beverages

Introduction

Ayahuasca is a traditional Amazonian psychoactive tea prepared from Banisteriopsis caapi and Psychotria viridis. Psychotria viridis is a source of the psychedelic indole N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), while B. caapi supplies β-carboline alkaloids (primarily harmine, harmaline and tetrahydroharmine) that act as monoamine‑oxidase (MAO) inhibitors. Because peripheral MAO normally inactivates orally ingested DMT, the β‑carbolines permit oral activity by inhibiting MAO; this synergistic combination underlies ayahuasca’s psychotropic effects. Use of the beverage has extended from indigenous ritual contexts into organised religious groups in Brazil and to communities outside South America, prompting growing pharmacological and toxicological interest. Paula and colleagues note that previous analyses often quantified DMT and β‑carbolines by separate techniques (commonly GC-NPD for DMT and HPLC for β‑carbolines), and that reports of simultaneous determination are limited and not widely standardised. The study therefore set out to develop and validate a single analytical method capable of simultaneous extraction and measurement of DMT plus the principal β‑carbolines in ayahuasca preparations, using solid‑phase extraction (C18) followed by gas chromatography with a nitrogen‑phosphorus detector (GC‑NPD). The authors position this as a practical tool for estimating administered doses in animal and human studies for subsequent pharmacological and toxicological work.