Study Shows DMT Helps Brains Heal From Stroke Damage

A recent study found that dimethyltryptamine, the naturally occurring psychedelic commonly known as DMT, protects against stroke damage in animal and cell models, Neuroscience News reports.

For the study, published in Science Advances, researchers at the HUN Biological Research Centre in Hungary tested the effects of DMT in rat stroke models and cell cultures.

DMT is a psychoactive compound that occurs naturally in a variety of plants and animals — including the human brain — and it is the primary ingredient in ayahuasca, a psychedelic used in religious ceremonies by some Indigenous cultures in South America. It is also being studied in clinical trials as a potential treatment for stroke damage, according to the report.

The study authors said their “findings prove that DMT mitigates a poststroke effect by stabilizing the blood-brain barrier and reducing neuroinflammation.”

Strokes are caused when a blood clot blocks or reduces blood flow to the brain. Current treatment options involve physically breaking up and removing the clots using medication or surgery.

“The therapeutic options currently available for stroke are very limited. The dual action of DMT, protecting the blood-brain barrier while reducing brain inflammation, offers a novel, complex approach that could complement existing treatments.” — Judit Vigh, study co-first author, via Neuroscience News

A non-peer-reviewed study in 2023 found that DMT treatments coupled with therapy could improve symptoms of depression.