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3,4-Methyl
Empathogens or entactogens are a class of psychoactive drugs that induce the production of experiences of emotional communion, oneness, relatedness, emotional openness—that is, empathy or sympathy—as particularly observed and reported for experiences with 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). This class of drug is distinguished from the classes of hallucinogen or psychedelic, and amphetamine or stimulants. Major members of this class include MDMA, MDA, MDEA, MDOH, MBDB, 5-APB, 5-MAPB, 6-APB, 6-MAPB, methylone, mephedrone, GHB, αMT, and αET, MDAI among others. Most entactogens are phenethylamines and amphetamines, although several, such as αMT and αET, are tryptamines. When referring to MDMA and its counterparts, the term MDxx is often used. Entactogens are sometimes incorrectly referred to as hallucinogens or stimulants, although many entactogens such as ecstasy exhibit psychedelic or stimulant properties as well.
3,4-Methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA), sometimes referred to as sass, is an empathogen-entactogen, stimulant, and psychedelic drug of the amphetamine family that is encountered mainly as a recreational drug. In its pharmacology, MDA is a serotonin–norepinephrine–dopamine releasing agent (SNDRA). In most countries, the drug is a controlled substance and its possession and sale are illegal.
David Earl Nichols is an American pharmacologist and medicinal chemist. Previously the Robert C. and Charlotte P. Anderson Distinguished Chair in Pharmacology at Purdue University, Nichols has worked in the field of psychoactive drugs since 1969. While still a graduate student, he patented the method that is used to make the optical isomers of hallucinogenic amphetamines. His contributions include the synthesis and reporting of escaline, LSZ, 6-APB, 2C-I-NBOMe and other NBOMe variants, and several others, as well as the coining of the term "entactogen".
Methylone, also known as 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylcathinone (MDMC), is an entactogen and stimulant drug of the amphetamine, cathinone, and benzodioxole families related to 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine. It is the β-keto or cathinone analogue of MDMA. Methylone is usually taken orally, but is also used by other routes.
5-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (5-Methyl-MDA) is an entactogen and psychedelic designer drug of the amphetamine class. It is a ring-methylated homologue of MDA and a structural isomer of MDMA.
MDAI, also known as 5,6-methylenedioxy-2-aminoindane, is an entactogen drug of the 2-aminoindane group which is related to MDMA and produces similar subjective effects.
α-Methyldopamine (α-Me-DA), also known as 3,4-dihydroxyamphetamine or as catecholamphetamine, is a research chemical of the catecholamine and amphetamine families. It is a monoamine releasing agent and a metabolite of MDMA and MDA. The bis-glutathionyl metabolite of α-methyldopamine is slightly neurotoxic when directly injected into the brain's ventricles.
6-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (6-Methyl-MDA) is an entactogen and psychedelic drug of the amphetamine class. It was first synthesized in the late 1990s by a team including David E. Nichols at Purdue University while investigating derivatives of 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA) and 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine (MDMA).
UWA-101 is a phenethylamine derivative researched as a potential treatment for Parkinson's disease. Its chemical structure is very similar to that of the illegal drug MDMA, the only difference being the replacement of the α-methyl group with an α-cyclopropyl group. MDMA has been found in animal studies and reported in unauthorised human self-experiments to be effective in the short-term relief of side-effects of Parkinson's disease therapy, most notably levodopa-induced dyskinesia. However the illegal status of MDMA and concerns about its potential for recreational use, neurotoxicity and potentially dangerous side effects mean that it is unlikely to be investigated for medical use in this application, and so alternative analogues were investigated.
5-MAPB, also known as 5-(N-methyl-2-aminopropyl)benzofuran, is an entactogen and designer drug of the amphetamine family that is similar to MDMA in its structure and effects.
MDMA-assisted psychotherapy is the use of prescribed doses of MDMA as an adjunct to psychotherapy sessions. Research suggests that MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), including complex PTSD (C-PTSD), might improve treatment effectiveness. In 2017, a Phase II clinical trial led to a breakthrough therapy designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for potential use as a treatment for PTSD.
βk-5-MAPB, or BK-5-MAPB, is an entactogen of the benzofuran and cathinone groups which is related to both 5-MAPB and methylone. It was patented by Matthew Baggott and Tactogen and is under investigation by Tactogen for potential medical use.
ODMA is a bioisosteric analogue of 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine (MDMA) which was developed in an attempt to create an improved MDMA alternative for potential clinical use. It is the analogue of MDMA in which the 1,3-benzodioxole ring has been replaced with a 2,1,3-benzoxadiazole ring. TDMA and SeDMA are closely related analogues. ODMA, TDMA, and SeDMA are releasing agents of serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine similarly to MDMA. However, they are less potent and efficacious in activating the serotonin 5-HT2A, 5-HT2B, and 5-HT2C receptors than MDMA and show differing and potentially improved metabolic and pharmacokinetic properties in comparison. ODMA, TDMA, and SeDMA were first described in the scientific literature in June 2024.
TDMA is a bioisosteric analogue of 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine (MDMA) which was developed in an attempt to create an improved MDMA alternative for potential clinical use. It is the analogue of MDMA in which the 1,3-benzodioxole ring has been replaced with a 2,1,3-benzothiadiazole ring. ODMA and SeDMA are closely related analogues. ODMA, TDMA, and SeDMA are releasing agents of serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine similarly to MDMA. However, they are less potent and efficacious in activating the serotonin 5-HT2A, 5-HT2B, and 5-HT2C receptors than MDMA and show differing and potentially improved metabolic and pharmacokinetic properties in comparison. ODMA, TDMA, and SeDMA were first described in the scientific literature in June 2024.
SeDMA is a bioisosteric analogue of 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine (MDMA) which was developed in an attempt to create an improved MDMA alternative for potential clinical use. It is the analogue of MDMA in which the 1,3-benzodioxole ring has been replaced with a 2,1,3-benzoselenadiazole ring. ODMA and TDMA are closely related analogues. ODMA, TDMA, and SeDMA are releasing agents of serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine similarly to MDMA. However, they are less potent and efficacious in activating the serotonin 5-HT2A, 5-HT2B, and 5-HT2C receptors than MDMA and show differing and potentially improved metabolic and pharmacokinetic properties in comparison. ODMA, TDMA, and SeDMA were first described in the scientific literature in June 2024.
(R)-3,4-Methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine ((R)-MDMA), also known as (R)-midomafetamine or as levo-MDMA, is the (R)- or levorotatory (l-) enantiomer of 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine (MDMA; midomafetamine; "ecstasy"), a racemic mixture of (R)-MDMA and (S)-MDMA. Like MDMA, (R)-MDMA is an entactogen or empathogen. It is taken by mouth.
The Borax combo, also known by the informal brand names Blue Bliss and Pink Star, is a combination recreational and designer drug described as an MDMA-like entactogen.
6-MBPB, also known as 6-(2-methylaminobutyl)benzofuran (6-MABB), is a monoamine releasing agent (MRA) and entactogen-like drug of the amphetamine, phenylisobutylamine, and benzofuran families. It is a positional isomer of 5-MBPB (5-MABB).
Tactogen is a public benefit corporation and start-up pharmaceutical company based in Palo Alto, California that is developing novel MDMA-like entactogens and psychedelics as medicines. Its stated goal is to develop new MDMA-like drugs with improved effectiveness, tolerability, and safety, as well as gentleness and accessibility, for treatment of psychiatric disorders and other conditions. Tactogen was co-founded by neuroscientist Matthew J. Baggott and Luke Pustejovsky in 2020. Baggott is the chief executive officer (CEO) while Pustejovsky is the chief operating officer (COO).
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 James W. Jesso (1 June 2023). "Entactogens, MDMA, and Bringing New Love Drugs To Market (with Matthew Baggott)". Adventures Through The Mind (Podcast). Retrieved 27 January 2025.
Matthew Baggott is a neuroscientist who has worked over three decades to legally study MDMA and related molecules. His research has ranged from studying the neurotoxicity of amphetamines in rodents to studying changes in emotional experience in people who have been given MDA or MDMA in a laboratory setting. Matthew is co-founder and CEO of Tactogen Inc, a public benefit corporation that is developing a next-generation of gentler, more accessible MDMA-like medicines. Before starting Tactogen, Matthew was a Director of Data Science & Engineering at Genentech. Matthew studied philosophy as an undergraduate at University of Chicago and earned his PhD in neuroscience at University of California Berkeley.
- 1 2 "Matthew Baggott: ICPR 2024". Europe's Conference on Psychedelic Research & Therapy. 16 January 2025. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
Matthew Baggott, PhD, is a neuroscientist and CEO of Tactogen, a public benefit corporation that is developing MDMA-like medicines with a goal of making transformative experiences safer, more effective, and more accessible. He studied philosophy at the University of Chicago, earned a PhD in neuroscience at UC Berkeley, and has conducted studies administering compounds such as MDMA and MDA to healthy volunteers.
- ↑ Baggott MJ, Richards JB, Sabol KE, Seiden LS (October 1992). "380.8 Large Dose Regimen of Methamphetamine Produces Long Lasting Deficits in the Acquisition and Performance of a Reaction Time Task" (PDF). Society for Neuroscience Abstracts. 18 [Society for Neuroscience 22nd Annual Meeting, Anaheim, California, October 25–30, 1992] (Part 1): 914.
- 1 2 3 "The quest to improve MDMA". Apple Podcasts. 20 December 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
- 1 2 3 Nuwer, R. (2023). I Feel Love: MDMA and the Quest for Connection in a Fractured World. Bloomsbury USA. ISBN 978-1-63557-957-4 . Retrieved 27 January 2025.
[...] said Matthew Baggott, a neuroscientist, history enthusiast, and cofounder and CEO of Tactogen, a company trying to develop new MDMA-like molecules. [...] If taken too often and at too-high doses, [MDMA] loses its magic, people often report. In an unpublished survey of six hundred MDMA users, neuroscientist Matthew Baggott found that 40 percent said the drug's effects changed over time. As the pleasurable parts of the experience diminish, users say they are left with more negative side effects: jaw clenching, wiggling eyes, speedy jitteriness, and a low mood in the days after. [...] Neuroscientist Matthew Baggott was working with MAPS at the time [of the Ricaurte MDMA primate neurotoxicity study] [...]
- 1 2 Nuwer, Rachel (18 August 2023). "MDMA Risks and How to Reduce Them". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
Many of MDMA's health risks relate to the fact that it is an amphetamine derivative, said Matthew Baggott, a neuroscientist and chief executive of Tactogen, a life sciences company developing MDMA-like molecules for medical use.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Rex, Erica (5 August 2021). "A Conversation with Dr Matthew Baggott". The Brave New World: Psychedelics in a Neoliberal Society. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
Pharmaceutical entrepreneur and data scientist Matthew Baggott, the CEO and co-founder of Tactogen, never set out to enter the psychoactive pharmaceutical business. As an undergraduate at the University of Chicago majoring in philosophy in the 1980s, [...] Dr Baggott worked in the lab first as an undergraduate, then spent two years there full time after he graduated. With guidance from Dr Alexander (Sasha) Shulgin, Dr Baggott moved to San Francisco and got a job at the University of California San Francisco at a lab which had been among the first to study the effects of LSD in humans. [...] By the time Dr Baggott earned his PhD in Neuroscience from the University of California Berkeley, the federal funding for MDMA research was drying up. He began working in data science. [...] Dr Baggott found Tactogen in 2020, a public benefit corporation1 [...]
- 1 2 3 4 5 Hamilton Morris (28 November 2023). "POD 92: Understanding and Improving MDMA with Dr. Matthew Baggott". The Hamilton Morris Podcast (Podcast). Patreon. Retrieved 30 November 2024.
For years I've wanted to interview Dr. Matthew Baggott, one of the word's leading experts on the human psychopharmacology and molecular neuropharmacology of MDMA and related entactogens. In this conversation we discuss his research career and his new efforts to design improved version of MDMA.
- ↑ "The Most Influential People in Psychedelics". Psychedelics.com. 30 September 2024. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
Matthew Baggott, Ph.D. CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, TACTOGEN Matthew Baggott, Ph.D.: Matthew Baggott is a data scientist and neuroscientist with more than three decades of psychedelics research. He is the co-founder and CEO of Tactogen, a biopharma research company devoted to developing empathogens, or drugs that promote connectedness and emotional openness, similar to MDMA. Tactogen's mission is to ensure that these psychedelic medicines are accessible, effective, and safe.
- ↑ Goodwin, Kate (30 September 2024). "MDMA Drug Developers Reprioritize Following Lykos Rejection in PTSD". BioSpace. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
[...] Matthew Baggott, co-founder and CEO of psychedelics-focused Tactogen, [...] Tactogen's pipeline includes a number of preclinical molecules that Baggott said he believes will be superior to MDMA. [...] Amidst this debate, Tactogen is working to improve the safety profile of MDMA through fixed dose combinations in hopes of decreasing side effects like difficulty concentrating and mood instability seen in some participants in the days after use. The company also hopes to improve tolerability with its program combining MDMA with citalopram, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) used to treat depression, for PTSD. Baggott anticipates beginning Phase II trials with the combo in 2025.
- ↑ Nuwer, Rachel (6 November 2023). "The Search for New Psychedelics". Scientific American. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
Nuwer: That's Matt Baggott, a neuroscientist and co-founder and CEO of a start-up called Tactogen. He and his colleagues are trying to make safer and more effective MDMA-like molecules for therapeutic and medical uses. [...] Baggott: I wrote to both Dave Nichols and Sasha Shulgin.... They both responded to me...and I was able to get a role at the University of California, San Francisco, in a lab that Sasha was affiliated with.... And so I got to know Sasha during that time period pretty well.
- ↑ Baggot MJ (2018). "Seed crystal: on the contributions of Alexander Shulgin to the science of consciousness". The Commemorative Edition of Pihkal and Tihkal. Berkeley: Transform Press. pp. 474–482. ISBN 9780963009661. OCLC 1176317484.
- ↑ Hillier, David (10 November 2022). "'Losing the Magic': When MDMA Just Stops Working". VICE. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
Matt Baggott has been publishing research on MDMA since 1999 and is now CEO of Tactogen, a corporation developing MDMA-like compounds for medicinal use. "We don't really know what causes the loss of therapeutic effects, or 'loss of magic'," he tells me over email. "MDMA, especially in higher doses or when people take multiple doses in a night, can cause lasting decreases in serotonin, tryptophan hydroxylase – a key enzyme that makes serotonin – and serotonin transporter. These decreases may make it so that your brain is releasing less serotonin compared to dopamine, which may make MDMA feel less magical and more like a typical stimulant." [...] After reviewing the available literature, Matt Baggott says of Sferios's case: "The serotonin system should slowly recover if one stops MDMA use. For people whose brains have only partly recovered, MDMA may still not fully work, but other drugs, like 5-MAPB, might because they interact with the serotonin system in a slightly different manner compared to MDMA." [...] So is there any data on how long it takes for the brain to recover? Baggott points to some 2021 research which suggests it could take around 500 days to regain its serotonin transporter (SERT) availability – although this is a rough estimate based on a comparison across studies and there is a lack of data on shorter times.
- ↑ Carpenter, David E. (25 January 2022). "DEA Proposes Adding Five Psychedelic Compounds to Schedule 1". Lucid News - Psychedelics, Consciousness Technology, and the Future of Wellness. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
- 1 2 3 Psychedelic Alpha (29 July 2022). "Inside the Challenge to DEA's Proposed Scheduling of 5 Psychedelic Tryptamines". Psychedelic Alpha. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
- ↑ Jaeger, Kyle (7 February 2022). "DEA Faces Backlash Over Proposed Scheduling Of Five Psychedelic Compounds". Marijuana Moment. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
- ↑ Martinovic, Jelena (7 February 2022). "Will The DEA Give In As Advocates Revolt Over Proposed Scheduling Of Five Psychedelic Compounds?". Benzinga. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
- 1 2 Matthew Aragón (9 January 2024). "Meet Moxy: The Novel Psychedelic the DEA Tried To Ban". doubleblindmag.com. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
- ↑ "STATEMENT OF MATTHEW BAGGOTT, PH.D. [In the Matter of Scheduling 4-OH-DiPT, 5-MeO-AMT, 5- MeO-MiPT, 5-MeO-DET, and DiPT]" (PDF). July 2022. Retrieved 27 January 2025.