PiHKAL: A Chemical Love Story is a book by Dr. Alexander Shulgin and Ann Shulgin, published in 1991. The subject of the work is psychoactive phenethylamine chemical derivatives, notably those that act as psychedelics and/or empathogen-entactogens. The main title, PiHKAL, is an acronym that stands for "Phenethylamines I Have Known and Loved."
2C-D is a psychedelic drug of the 2C family that is sometimes used as an entheogen. It was first synthesized in 1970 by a team from the Texas Research Institute of Mental Sciences, and its activity was subsequently investigated in humans by Alexander Shulgin. In his book PiHKAL, Shulgin lists the dosage range as being from 20 to 60 mg. Lower doses of 10 mg or less have been explored for microdosing.
2C-T-4 (2,5-dimethoxy-4-isopropylthiophenethylamine) is a psychedelic phenethylamine of the 2C family. It was first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin and is used as entheogenic recreational drug.
2C-G is a psychedelic phenethylamine of the 2C-series. First synthesized by Alexander Shulgin, it is sometimes used as an entheogen. It has structural and pharmacodynamic properties similar to 2C-D and Ganesha. Like many of the phenethylamines in PiHKAL, 2C-G and its homologs have only been taken by Shulgin and a small test group, making it difficult to ensure completeness when describing effects.
2C-T is a psychedelic and hallucinogenic drug of the 2C family. It is used by some as an entheogen. It has structural and pharmacodynamic properties similar to the drugs mescaline and 2C-T-2.
2,5-Dimethoxy-4-nitroamphetamine (DON) is a psychedelic drug and amphetamine. It is an analog of DOM and DOB. It is also closely related to 2C-N.
2,5-Dimethoxy-4-ethylamphetamine is a psychedelic drug of the phenethylamine and amphetamine chemical classes. It was first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin, and was described in his book PiHKAL.
Ganesha (2,5-dimethoxy-3,4-dimethylamphetamine) is a lesser-known psychedelic drug. It is also a substituted amphetamine. It was first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin. In his book PiHKAL, the dosage range is listed as 24–32 mg. The drug is usually taken orally, although other routes such as rectally may also be used. Ganesha is synthesized from 2,5-dimethoxy-3,4-dimethylbenzaldehyde. Ganesha is the amphetamine analog of 2C-G. It is a particularly long lasting drug, with the duration listed in PiHKAL as being 18–24 hours, which might make it undesirable to some users. It is named after the Hindu deity, Ganesha. Very little is known about the dangers or toxicity of ganesha. Effects of ganesha include:
2C-T-13 is a psychedelic phenethylamine of the 2C family. It was presumably first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin and reported in his book PiHKAL.
2C-T-15 or 2,5-dimethoxy-4-(β-cyclopropylthio)phenethylamine is a psychedelic phenethylamine of the 2C family. It was presumably first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin and reported in his book PiHKAL .
2C-T-17 or 2,5-dimethoxy-4-(β-secbutylthio)phenethylamine is a psychedelic phenethylamine of the 2C family. It was presumably first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin and reported in his book PiHKAL .
HOT-2 is a psychedelic phenethylamine of the 2C family. It was presumably first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin and reported in his book PiHKAL.
HOT-17 is a psychedelic phenethylamine of the 2C family. It was synthesized by Alexander Shulgin and reported in his book PiHKAL.
2,5-Dimethoxy-4-butylamphetamine (DOBU) is a lesser-known psychedelic drug and a substituted amphetamine. DOBU was first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin. In his book PiHKAL (Phenethylamines i Have Known And Loved), only low dosages of 2–3 mg were tested, with the duration simply listed as "very long". DOBU produces paresthesia and difficulty sleeping, but with few other effects. Compared to shorter chain homologues such as DOM, DOET and DOPR which are all potent hallucinogens, DOBU has an even stronger 5-HT2 binding affinity but fails to substitute for hallucinogens in animals or produce hallucinogenic effects in humans, suggesting it has low efficacy and is thus an antagonist or weak partial agonist at the 5-HT2A receptor.
Dimethoxy-4-amylamphetamine (DOAM) is a lesser-known psychedelic drug and a substituted amphetamine. DOAM was first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin. In his book PiHKAL (Phenethylamines i Have Known And Loved), the minimum dosage is listed as 10 mg, and the duration is unknown. DOAM produces a bare threshold and tenseness. As the 4-alkyl chain length is increased from shorter homologues such as DOM, DOET and DOPR which are all potent hallucinogens, the 5-HT2 binding affinity increases, rising to a maximum with the 4-(n-hexyl) derivative before falling again with even longer chains, but compounds with chain length longer than n-propyl, or with other bulky groups such as isopropyl, t-butyl or γ-phenylpropyl at the 4- position, fail to substitute for hallucinogens in animals or produce hallucinogenic effects in humans, suggesting these have low efficacy and are thus antagonists or partial agonists at the 5-HT2A receptor.
2,5-Dimethoxy-4-methylphenylcyclopropylamine (DMCPA) is a lesser-known psychedelic drug and a substituted amphetamine. DMCPA was first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin. In his book PiHKAL, the dosage range is listed as 15–20 mg and the duration is listed as 4–8 hours. DMCPA produces open-eye visuals, anorexia, and psychedelic dreams. Shulgin gives it a +++ on the Shulgin Rating Scale.
IDNNA (2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodo-N,N-dimethylamphetamine) is a lesser-known psychedelic drug and a substituted amphetamine. It is also the N,N-dimethyl analog of DOI. IDNNA was first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin. In his book PiHKAL, the minimum dosage is listed as 2.6 mg, and the duration unknown. IDNNA produces few to no effects. Very little data exists about the pharmacological properties, metabolism, and toxicity of IDNNA.
2,5-Dimethoxy-4-ethoxyamphetamine (MEM) is a psychedelic drug of the phenethylamine and amphetamine chemical classes. It was first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin. In his book PiHKAL, he lists the active dose range as 20–50 mg, and the duration as 10–14 hours. According to Shulgin, MEM produces color enhancement, visual phenomena, and pattern movement, among other effects.
TOM, or methylthio-methyl-methoxyamphetamine, is a series of lesser-known psychedelic drugs and substituted amphetamines with the molecular formula C12H19NOS. 2-TOM and 5-TOM are the 2- and 5-methylthio analogs of 2,5-dimethoxy-4-methylamphetamine (DOM), respectively. They were first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin and described in his book PiHKAL. Very little is known about their dangers or toxicity.
MPM (2,5-dimethoxy-4-propoxyamphetamine) is a lesser-known psychedelic drug and a substituted amphetamine.
