NYU Conference on Ibogaine Nov 5-6, 1999

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IBOGAINE NEUROTOXICITY

Michael Bosman
Editor, The Ibogaine Dossier (retired)

Revised August 26, 2001
Howard S. Lotsof
Ibogaine Consultant

Concern has been expressed regarding ibogaine neurotoxicity.

However, an intra-peritoneal dose of 40 mg/kg for 12 days, or 10 mg/kg for 30 days caused no significant pathologic findings in rat heart, liver, kidneys, and brain. (Dhahir 1971) No neurotoxicity was observed after 5-25 mg/kg ibogaine for 4 days per os in African green monkeys. (Sanchez-Ramos 1994)

While O'Hearn and Molliver describe that ibogaine and harmaline have selective neurotoxic effects, leading to degeneration of Purkinje cells in the cerebellar vermis, (O'Hearn 1993a, 1993b) Molinari et al. subsequently report that ibogaine induced neurotoxicity is dose-dependent, not causing pathological changes at therapeutic doses in the rat. (Molinari 1996)

Glick shows that 18-methoxy-coronaridine, a novel, synthetic iboga alkaloid congener, mimics ibogaine's effects on drug self-administration without evidence of cerebellar toxicity at a high dose (100 mg/kg). (Glick 1996) Popik states that ibogaine exhibits neuroprotective properties in cultures of cerebellar granule cell neurons. (Popik 1995)

Further, to the matter of neurotoxicity, Helsley shows no significant differences in Purkinje cell numbers between ibogaine and control groups (Helsley 1997) while Xu in work jointly performed at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and the Division of Neurotoxicology, National Center for Toxicological Research, an FDA laboratory showed no neurotoxicity above controls at human therapeutic doses of 25 mg/kg of ibogaine in the rat. (Xu 2000)

Literature