norbaeocystin

Norbaeocystin is a naturally occurring tryptamine alkaloid found as a minor compound in psilocybin-containing mushrooms, serving as a phosphorylated derivative of 4-hydroxytryptamine (4-HT) and an N-demethylated analog of baeocystin and psilocybin. It acts as a prodrug that is dephosphorylated to 4-HT, a potent serotonin 5-HT2A receptor agonist with central penetrance and interactions at other serotonin receptors, though it exhibits β-arrestin2-preferring biased agonism that putatively renders it non-hallucinogenic, as evidenced by lack of head-twitch response in animal models unlike psilocybin. Recent biosynthetic platforms using engineered E. coli enable gram-scale production for preclinical studies exploring potential therapeutic efficacy, such as antidepressant effects in stress-induced depression models.[1][3][7]

Other names

4-phosphoryloxytryptamine