N,N-Dimethyltriptamine, or DMT, is an organic compound derived from tryptamine which produces psychedelic effects and is used by cultures around the world as a psychedelic plant medicine. DMT is found naturally in the tissues of a variety of plant species and is also present in miniscule amounts in mammalian brains¹. DMT is most well-known and most commonly associated with the preparation and ingestion of the South American psychedelic brew ayahuasca, derived from native plant species in the Amazon rainforest.
DMT is closely related to a number of other well-recognized and widely used compounds also found in nature and also derived from tryptamine, including the compounds psylocin and psilocybin found in several species of hallucinogenic mushrooms and the hallucinogenic compound bufotenin found in the glands of several species of toads.
The most well-known plant specie containing n,n-dimethyltriptamine is psychotria viridis, an understory shrub in the coffee family which contains notable amounts of DMT. Other plant species such as mimosa tenuiflora also contain DMT.
DMT, as with other tryptamine-derived compounds, is quickly oxidized if ingested orally. As a result, the psychedelic effects of DMT are only experienced if it is ingested along with a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI) which temporarily blocks the body’s ability to oxidize the DMT, allowing it to build up in the body and its psychedelic effects to be experienced.
N,n-dimethyltriptamine is a powerful psychoplastogen, capable of inspiring new neural growth and increasing neuroplasticity in adults to a highly plasticized, child-like state capable of significant re-wiring of neural pathways in short periods of time. As a result of this compound’s profound ability, DMT is being investigated in clinical settings as a possible treatment for depression and Parkinson’s desease.
¹ Dean, J., Liu, T., Huff, S. et al. Biosynthesis and Extracellular Concentrations of N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in Mammalian Brain. Sci Rep 9, 9333 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-45812-w
