It describes the chemical characteristics and the effects of Ayahuasca consumption, in order to know the current status of the discoveries to date regarding their pharmacological properties. A literature review was performed on studies of ayahuasca until 2013 in English, Spanish, and Portuguese in the databases of PubMed, PsycINFO, Psyke, Psicodoc, and Redalyc; as well as chapters in books and literature obtained from related research. It is concluded that one of the components of ayahuasca – harmine – can be used to treat different pathologies. Keywords: Ayahuasca, hallucinogens, pharmacological, toxicity