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Other names | NMT; Methyltryptamine; N-MT; Monomethyltryptamine; Dipterine |
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ECHA InfoCard | 100.000.462 |
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Formula | C11H14N2 |
Molar mass | 174.247 g·mol−1 |
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Melting point | 87 to 89 °C (189 to 192 °F) |
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N-Methyltryptamine (NMT), also known as monomethyltryptamine, is a chemical compound of the tryptamine family and a naturally occurring compound found in the human body and certain plants.
It is biosynthesized in humans from tryptamine by certain N-methyltransferase enzymes, such as indolethylamine N-methyltransferase. [1] [2] It is a known component in human urine. [3] NMT is an alkaloid derived from L-tryptophan that has been found in the bark, shoots and leaves of several plant genera, including Virola , Acacia , Mimosa , and Desmanthus —often together with the related compounds N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT). [4]
NMT acts as a serotonin receptor agonist and serotonin releasing agent [5] and produces psychoactive and hallucinogenic effects in humans. [6]
Orally administered NMT appears to produce no psychoactive effects, likely as a result of extensive first-pass metabolism. [7] However, it may become active upon combination with a MAOA inhibitor (MAOI). [7]
By vaporization, NMT shows psychoactive activity at 50 to 100 mg, with a duration of 45 to 70 minutes; duration of visual effects is said to be only 15 to 30 seconds. Effects are primarily non-visual. [6] [8]
NMT is known to act as a potent serotonin 5-HT2A receptor full agonist (EC50 = 50.7 nM; Emax = 96%). [5] It has been reported to be inactive in activating the β-arrestin pathway of the receptor and hence appears to be a biased agonist of the serotonin 5-HT2A receptor. [5] In contrast to the serotonin 5-HT2A receptor, the drug is not an agonist of the serotonin 5-HT1A receptor. [5]
In addition to its serotonin 5-HT2A receptor agonism, NMT is a potent serotonin releasing agent (EC50 = 22.4 nM). [5] It also releases dopamine and norepinephrine much more weakly (EC50 = 321 nM and 733 nM, respectively; 14- and 33-fold less than for serotonin, respectively). [5]
In the United States NMT is considered a schedule 1 controlled substance as an positional isomer of Alpha-methyltryptamine (AMT) [9]
N,N-Dimethyltryptamine is a substituted tryptamine that occurs in many plants and animals, including humans, and which is both a derivative and a structural analog of tryptamine. DMT is used as a psychedelic drug and prepared by various cultures for ritual purposes as an entheogen.
Tryptamine is an indolamine metabolite of the essential amino acid, tryptophan. The chemical structure is defined by an indole—a fused benzene and pyrrole ring, and a 2-aminoethyl group at the second carbon. The structure of tryptamine is a shared feature of certain aminergic neuromodulators including melatonin, serotonin, bufotenin and psychedelic derivatives such as dimethyltryptamine (DMT), psilocybin, psilocin and others.
5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP), used medically as oxitriptan, is a naturally occurring amino acid and chemical precursor as well as a metabolic intermediate in the biosynthesis of the neurotransmitter serotonin.
α-Ethyltryptamine, also known as etryptamine, is an entactogen and stimulant drug of the tryptamine family. It was originally developed and marketed as an antidepressant under the brand name Monase by Upjohn in the 1960s before being withdrawn due to toxicity.
N-Ethyltryptamine (NET) is a tryptamine that is structurally related to N-methyltryptamine (NMT) and the psychedelic drugs N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and N,N-diethyltryptamine (DET).
Baeocystin, also known as norpsilocybin or 4-phosphoryloxy-N-methyltryptamine (4-PO-NMT), is a zwitterionic alkaloid and analog of psilocybin. It is found as a minor compound in most psilocybin mushrooms together with psilocybin, norbaeocystin, aeruginascin, and psilocin. Baeocystin is an N-demethylated derivative of psilocybin, and a phosphorylated derivative of 4-HO-NMT (4-hydroxy-N-methyltryptamine). The structures at right illustrate baeocystin in its zwitterionic form.
5-MeO-DET or 5-methoxy-N,N-diethyltryptamine is a hallucinogenic tryptamine.
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.
Ariadne is a little-known psychoactive drug of the substituted phenethylamine family. It is a homologue of the psychedelics 2C-D and DOM.
5-MeO-NMT (5-methoxy-N-methyltryptamine) is an organic chemical compound, being the 5-methoxy analog of N-methyltryptamine (NMT). It was first isolated from Phalaris arundinacea. It has also been synthesized by Alexander Shulgin and reported in his book TiHKAL. Like other members of the N-methyltryptamine family of compounds, 5-MeO-NMT is believed to produce few or no psychedelic effects {citation needed}, although very little data exists about its pharmacological properties or toxicity.
α,N-Dimethyltryptamine (α,N-DMT; developmental code names SK&F-7024, Ro 3-1715), also known as N-methyl-α-methyltryptamine (N-methyl-αMT), is a lesser-known substituted tryptamine and psychoactive drug. It is the α,N-dimethyl positional isomer of N,N-dimethyltryptamine (N,N-DMT).
Substituted tryptamines, or serotonin analogues, are organic compounds which may be thought of as being derived from tryptamine itself. The molecular structures of all tryptamines contain an indole ring, joined to an amino (NH2) group via an ethyl (−CH2–CH2−) sidechain. In substituted tryptamines, the indole ring, sidechain, and/or amino group are modified by substituting another group for one of the hydrogen (H) atoms.
The head-twitch response (HTR) is a rapid side-to-side head movement that occurs in mice and rats after the serotonin 5-HT2A receptor is activated. The prefrontal cortex may be the neuroanatomical locus mediating the HTR. Many serotonergic hallucinogens, including lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), induce the head-twitch response, and so the HTR is used as a behavioral model of hallucinogen effects. However while there is generally a good correlation between compounds that induce head twitch in mice and compounds that are hallucinogenic in humans, it is unclear whether the head twitch response is primarily caused by 5-HT2A receptors, 5-HT2C receptors or both, though recent evidence shows that the HTR is mediated by the 5-HT2A receptor and modulated by the 5-HT2C receptor. Also, the effect can be non-specific, with head twitch responses also produced by some drugs that do not act through 5-HT2 receptors, such as phencyclidine, yohimbine, atropine and cannabinoid receptor antagonists. As well, compounds such as 5-HTP, fenfluramine, 1-Methylpsilocin, Ergometrine, and 3,4-di-methoxyphenethylamine (DMPEA) can also produce head twitch and do stimulate serotonin receptors, but are not hallucinogenic in humans. This means that while the head twitch response can be a useful indicator as to whether a compound is likely to display hallucinogenic activity in humans, the induction of a head twitch response does not necessarily mean that a compound will be hallucinogenic, and caution should be exercised when interpreting such results.
5-Chloro-α-methyltryptamine (5-Chloro-αMT), also known as PAL-542, is a tryptamine derivative related to α-methyltryptamine (αMT) and one of only a few known specific serotonin-dopamine releasing agents (SDRAs). It has been investigated in animals as a potential treatment for cocaine dependence. The EC50 values of 5-chloro-αMT in evoking the in vitro release of serotonin (5-HT), dopamine (DA), and norepinephrine (NE) in rat synaptosomes were reported as 16 nM, 54 nM, and 3434 nM, with an NE/DA ratio of 63.6 and a DA/5-HT ratio of 3.38, indicating that it is a highly specific and well-balanced SDRA. However, 5-chloro-αMT has also been found to act as a potent full agonist of the 5-HT2A receptor, with an EC50 value of 6.27 nM and an efficacy of 105%. It is likely to act as a potent agonist of other serotonin receptors as well.
O-Acetylbufotenine, or bufotenine O-acetate, also known as 5-acetoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-AcO-DMT) or O-acetyl-N,N-dimethylserotonin, is a synthetic tryptamine derivative and putative serotonergic psychedelic. It is the O-acetylated analogue of the naturally occurring peripherally selective serotonergic tryptamine bufotenine and is thought to act as a centrally penetrant prodrug of bufotenine.
A neurotransmitter prodrug, or neurotransmitter precursor, is a drug that acts as a prodrug of a neurotransmitter. A variety of neurotransmitter prodrugs have been developed and used in medicine. They can be useful when the neurotransmitter itself is not suitable for use as a pharmaceutical drug owing to unfavorable pharmacokinetic or physicochemical properties, for instance high susceptibility to metabolism, short elimination half-life, or lack of blood–brain barrier permeability. Besides their use in medicine, neurotransmitter prodrugs have also been used as recreational drugs in some cases.
6-MeO-DMT, or 6-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine, also known as 6-OMe-DMT, is a serotonergic drug of the tryptamine family. It is the 6-methoxy derivative of the serotonergic psychedelic N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and is a positional isomer of the serotonergic psychedelic 5-MeO-DMT.
4-Hydroxytryptamine, also known as N,N-didesmethylpsilocin, is a naturally occurring tryptamine alkaloid. It is a positional isomer of serotonin and is the dephosphorylated form of norbaeocystin. The compound may serve as an alternative precursor of psilocybin in psilocybin mushrooms.