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Baeocystin, also known as norpsilocybin or 4-phosphoryloxy- N-methyltryptamine ( 4-PO-NMT), is a zwitterionic alkaloid of the tryptamine family and an analogue of psilocybin (4-PO-DMT). It is found as a minor compound in most psilocybin mushrooms together with psilocybin, psilocin (4-HO-DMT), norbaeocystin (4-PO-T), and aeruginascin (4-PO-TMT). The compound is the N-demethylation derivative of psilocybin and the 4-phosphorylation derivative of norpsilocin (4-HO-NMT).
Gartz has also claimed that mushrooms with high baeocystin content, such as Psilocybe semilanceata, are more frequently associated with dysphoria experiences. Conversely, he has claimed that accidental ingestion of Inocybe aeruginascens, which contains high levels of both aeruginascin (4-PO-TMT) and baeocystin, is usually associated with euphoria experiences, in contrast to the dysphoric experiences that can occur with mushrooms containing only high levels of psilocybin. However, more research is needed on the effects of baeocystin and aeruginascin in humans.
In contrast to Gartz, mycologist Paul Stamets has reported that he tried 10mg pure baeocystin and that it didn't produce hallucinogenic effects, but did produce pupil dilation and apparent anxiolysis.
Baeocystin and norpsilocin have been found to be inactive in terms of hallucinogen-like effects in rodents in multiple studies published in the 2020s. More specifically, they were unable to produce the head-twitch response (HTR), a well-established behavioral proxy of psychedelic effects, and this was in contrast to psilocybin. In one of the papers, the researchers concluded that "...baeocystin alone would likely not induce hallucinogenic effects in vivo". As with baeocystin and norpsilocin, norbaeocystin, aeruginascin, 4-hydroxytryptamine (4-HT), and 4-HO-TMT also all failed to induce the HTR in rodents. However, these compounds have not necessarily been inactive in terms of behavioral effects in general.
The reasons for the apparently non-hallucinogenic nature of norpsilocin, baeocystin, and related compounds in animals (and possibly in humans), in spite of norpsilocin and others being potent serotonin 5-HT2A receptor agonists and producing other centrally mediated behavioral effects in animals, remain unknown. One possibility however is that these compounds may be of the serotonin 5-HT2A receptor and may not sufficiently activate the intracellular signaling cascades responsible for psychedelic effects. On the other hand, a 2025 animal study found that both baeocystin and norpsilocin are peripherally selective with very limited ability to cross the blood–brain barrier.
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