Texas politicians lead effort to study a psychedelic drug. What is ibogaine?
- - - Texas politicians lead effort to study a psychedelic drug. What is ibogaine?
Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAY June 29, 2025 at 4:05 AM
A once obscure traditional psychedelic plant from Africa has made headlines recently as Texas pushes for more research and a prominent Republican wrote a vigorous endorsement of its possible use for the treatment of addiction and for veterans experiencing mental health issues.
Ibogaine is illegal for use in the United States, but a growing body of evidence has shown its promise treating the effects of traumatic brain injury and substance use disorder.
Earlier in June, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed legislation to allocate $50 million for clinical trials approved by the Food and Drug Administration to study ibogaine. Texas is set to lead research into the drug's benefits treating mental health issues and addiction as a potential medication.
Former Energy Secretary Rick Perry, also a former Texas governor, wrote a June 27 Washington Post op-ed supporting ibogaine research and criticizing the legacy of the war on drugs, started by President Richard Nixon and touted by President Ronald Reagan.
Perry said he has "come to realize just how wrong that narrative was."
"That fear-based messaging kept us from exploring treatments that could have saved countless lives," Perry wrote.
Perry and a growing number of conservatives have argued ibogaine could be one of those treatments. Here's what to know about the drug.
What is ibogaine?
Ibogaine derives from the root of the iboga plant native to western-central Africa. It's been used in ceremonial rituals for centuries. It has hallucinogenic properties.
The United States outlawed ibogaine in 1967 along with other psychotropic drugs. The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 placed it as a schedule I hallucinogenic drug, along with marijuana. Ibogaine's classification prevented researchers from studying its effects.
But unlike other schedule 1 drugs such as heroin, ibogaine has anti-addictive properties. There are risks since ibogaine can delay the body's normal electrical signals that control heart rhythm, which could lead to death.
A man opens the Mayay iboga capsule to show its powdered content in Gabon on February 13, 2025. Iboga, the powerful psychoactive root, has long been used by people in Gabon's forests for its sacred and psychotropic properties.
Other countries, such as Mexico, have allowed its use.
American veterans and others have traveled to smaller, clandestine clinics for treatment to deal with depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and addiction. Many clinics are along the border and around cities such as Tijuana.
Why is it in the news?
At the state and federal level, there is growing interest in studying psychedelic drugs to treat veterans and others.
Texas passed legislation earlier in June to study the drug with a public university alongside a company and hospital, Abbott's office said.
Dr. Marty Makary, the FDA commissioner, has said expanding research on psychedelic drugs is a top priority for the Trump administration.
Former Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, a Republican and former Texas governor, is championing the psychoactive drug ibogaine to treat trauma, addiction and brain injuries.
In his op-ed, Perry cited the experiences of Morgan and Marcus Luttrell, twin combat veterans, who used ibogaine for recovery. Morgan Luttrell is now a Republican congressman from Texas who has advocated for ibogaine and other psychedelic drugs as treatment options.
In January 2025, Perry and W. Bryan Hubbard, an advocate for ibogaine treatment, appeared on Joe Rogan's podcast to discuss ibogaine's benefits as a plant-based medicine.
Hubbard led a Kentucky task force that sought to use opioid settlement funds to research ibogaine's effects to treat addiction, but the initiative failed to gain support in the state. Hubbard and Perry eventually launched the Texas Ibogaine Initiative, which helped spur the state funding.
What has research shown?
Research, such as a Stanford University study of 30 male combat veterans, has shown ibogaine's promise.
Coupled with magnesium sulfate to address heart effects, ibogaine appeared to reduce symptoms of PTSD, anxiety and depression, and improve cognitive function from traumatic brain injury, according to the study, published in 2024 in the eminent journal Nature Medicine.
Other studies have shown benefits treating addiction and depression.
What do critics say?
One issue with ibogaine is the ability to produce it, because it is derived from a rare plant and has mostly been used for ceremonial purposes. There is research to help innovate its safe production, but it could be difficult for the drug to be more widely available, as researchers at the University of California, Davis, Institute for Psychedelics and Neurotherapeutics have said.
And while it's shown benefits with combat veterans, questions remain on its efficacy among randomized participants.
With Texas' research, ibogaine could get closer to FDA approval for its use as a medication.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Texas politicians lead effort to study a psychedelic drug ibogaine
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