---
title: "Naturally-Occurring “Mystical” Psychedelic Found in Mammal Brains"
description: "Researchers from the University of Michigan found widespread traces of naturally-occurring dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in the mammalian brain."
date: "2019-06-27"
modified: "2019-06-27"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/natural-psychedelic-mammal-brains"
categories:
  - "Brain"
  - "Health & Medicine"
tags:
  - "hallucinogens"
  - "neurotransmitters"
  - "psychedelics"
  - "the digest"
---

# Naturally-Occurring “Mystical” Psychedelic Found in Mammal Brains

![Researchers from the University of Michigan found widespread traces of naturally-occurring dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in the mammalian brain.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/naturally-occurring-mystical-psychedelic-found-in-mammal-brains.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Linnaea Mallette/Victor Tangermann\</em\>*

## Natural Ayahuasca

Researchers from the University of Michigan found widespread traces of naturally-occurring dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in lab rat brains.

It's same substance that's found in Ayahuasca, a concoction used by indigenous peoples from the Amazon basin as part of their hallucinogenic religious ceremonies.

Jimo Borjigin, PhD at the Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, who co-authored [the paper](<https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-45812-w>) published in the journal *Scientific Reports,* got the idea to look for the substance from a mid-1990s documentary that explored the effect of DMT IV injections on the brain.

And the results surprised them. Using a special DNA localization technique, "we found brain neurons with the two enzymes required to make DMT," Borjigin said [in a statement](<https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2019-06/mm-u-pc062619.php>).

"They are also found in other parts of the brain, including the neocortex and hippocampus that are important for higher-order brain functions including learning and memory," she added.

## Insane in the Membrane

And that's not all. Borjigin and her team also found that levels of DMT increased in some rats that were about to die from a heart attack, suggesting that the substance could possibly simulate near death experiences.

"We don't know what it's doing in the brain," said Borjigin. All we're saying is we discovered the neurons that make this chemical in the brain, and they do so at levels similar to other monoamine neurotransmitters."

**READ MORE:** ['Mystical' psychedelic compound found in normal brains](<https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2019-06/mm-u-pc062619.php>) \[University of Michigan\]

**More on hallucinogenics:** *[Magic Mushrooms Could Replace Antidepressants](<https://futurism.com/neoscope/magic-mushrooms-replace-antidepressants>)*

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)