Psychedelic drug DMT to be trialled on UK volunteers to tackle alcohol misuse

6 hours ago 1

A powerful psychedelic that is used in healing ceremonies by Indigenous groups in the Amazon is being trialled as a pioneering approach to reduce problematic alcohol consumption.

Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) is the active ingredient in ayahuasca, a hallucinogenic brew that has been used for thousands of years by shamans in South America. Scientists based at University College London are testing whether a one-off dose of the drug could help hazardous drinkers who want to reduce their alcohol intake.

Alcohol addiction is notoriously difficult to overcome and there are few effective therapies available.

“The current treatments really don’t work for a large proportion of people. For alcohol addiction, 50% of people relapse within three months and around 60-70% within three years,” said Prof Ravi Das, who is co-leading the trial at University College London. “Treatment itself hasn’t changed fundamentally in 70 years, so there’s a desperate need for new drugs and treatment approaches. To the extent that DMT might provide a more effective treatment approach, it is worth exploring.”

In its pure form, DMT is one of the most powerful psychoactive substances found in nature. “The dose we chose reliably produces strong effects,” said Dr Greg Cooper, a research fellow at UCL, adding that this included total out-of-body experiences, fully immersive hallucinations and entering colourful geometric landscapes.

A few volunteers have already begun the trial, which will include 120 study participants, making it the largest psychedelic brain imaging study to date. “People seem to find the experience rewarding but not necessarily something they’d want to do recreationally,” said Cooper.

Participants are given an intravenous dose of the drug, the effects of which last for only about 15 minutes, while a control group receive a placebo or a non-hallucinogenic medication. In the UCL trial, the scientists are using a specially developed procedure to reactivate participants’ alcohol-related reward memories. They assess whether the study drugs can then interfere with these memories to reduce drinking. The exact details are not being disclosed as this could bias the results.

“Excessive drinking is partly driven by alcohol hijacking the brain’s built-in motivation and reward system,” said Das. “We are seeking to counteract that with our treatment.”

Volunteers are given MRI brain scans while watching film excerpts featuring alcohol, including Withnail and I and The Trip, and then tracked for up to nine months to assess whether, and how, the drug works. One theory is that it may make the brain more susceptible to being rewired at the cellular level – but the experience may also play a role.

“This idea of ‘neuroplasticity’ as being the mechanism for better mental health is thrown around a lot in the media because it is sciencey-sounding, but it is often poorly defined,” said Das. “There’s probably a huge role that’s played by people having this totally novel, salient experience on psychedelics. They’ve already come into this study motivated to reduce their drinking and this novel experience may be like a way-marker in their journey that cements their commitment to drinking less.”

Das’s team previously showed that a one-off dose of ketamine could be used to disrupt harmful patterns of behaviour. DMT is regarded as safer and shorter-acting, meaning it could be more practical to administer. However, the team emphasised the need for the drug to be administered under medical supervision.

“I would strongly caution against attempting to self-medicate with psychedelics at home,” said Das. “With DMT – and all the psychedelics research coming out – it’s milligram doses we’re talking about, and effects outside of a clinical setting may be wildly different.”

The team hope the study, if successful, will pave the way for a phase 3 clinical trial. “People have the impression that gen Z are drinking less, and that alcohol problems are therefore reducing, but globally, problematic use is actually continuing to rise,” said Das. “Treatment itself hasn’t changed fundamentally in 70 years, so there’s a desperate need for new drugs and treatment approaches. To the extent that DMT might provide a more effective treatment approach, it is worth exploring.”