Dimethyltryptamine: Endogenous Role and Therapeutic Potential.

N, N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) is an indole alkaloid produced by a number of plants and animals, including humans. Its psychoactive effects were first described in 1956 by Stephen Szára, but have been exploited for centuries by South American indigenous populations in the form of ayahuasca. In the present review, we assess the state of the art regarding a putative role for endogenous DMT and potential clinical applications of ayahuasca and DMT. A review assessing the pharmacological profile of DMT and its clinical effects in humans was performed using the PubMed data base until 5 August 2018 with the words: ayahuasca and N,N-dimethyltryptamine. While the role of endogenous DMT remains unclear, ayahuasca has promising results in anxiety, depression and substance dependence. Since ayahuasca has a good safety profile, it is crucial to conduct further research aimed at developing new treatments for psychiatric disorders.

Effects of raftilose on serum biochemistry and liver morphology in rats fed with normal or high-fat diet.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is the leading cause of chronic liver injury in developed countries. Oligofructose (OFS) is a prebiotic with proven benefits for health. The aim of the study is to evaluate the effect of 10% OFS on hepatic morphology and lipid metabolism in Wistar Kyoto rats submitted to normal diet (ND) or high-fat diet (FD). Animals were treated for 7 weeks. Lipid profile and serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity were measured and liver histology evaluated at the end of the study. Ten percent OFS reduced triglyceride (TAG) levels when added to any of the diet regimens; 10% OFS decreased plasmatic urea in ND and plasmatic and urinary urea levels in FD; ND + 10% OFS treated rats showed lower ALP activity than controls. FD increased ALP activity, an effect not reversed by OFS. Animals submitted to FD have microscopic hepatic changes: marked steatosis with disarranged centrilobular zone structure; enlarged sinusoids; enlarged mitochondria and an increase in number and volume of adiposomes. Supplementation with 10% OFS in FD reversed those effects. In conclusion, 10% OFS supplementation prevented deleterious effects of FD such as alterations on lipid profile (TAG elevation) and hepatic morphologic changes. OFS decreased ALP activity in animals subjected to ND, which may have contributed to the differences on lipid metabolism.