4-Hydroxytryptamine: The Psychedelic Ingredient You Didn't Know Was in Magic Mushrooms

• What is 4-Hydroxytryptamine?
• 4-Hydroxytryptamine in Magic Mushrooms
• Biological Significance
• Neuropharmacology
• Legal Status
• Bottom Line

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Magic mushrooms are famous for the hallucinogenic compounds they contain. Most people know about psilocybin, the most prominent psychedelic ingredient. However, magic mushrooms contain numerous alkaloids (active compounds) that affect cognitive function. 4-hydroxytryptamine is one of them. 

What is 4-hydroxytryptamine, and why is it important? 

This article explores 4-hydroxytryptamine chemistry, its effects, lab testing, benefits, and relevance in psychedelic research. 

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What is 4-Hydroxytryptamine?

4-hydroxytryptamine belongs to a class of naturally occurring psychedelic substances called tryptamine alkaloids, which come from the amino acid tryptophan. This class encompasses neurotransmitters in the brain, like serotonin and melatonin. 

Tryptamines also include psychedelic compounds like psilocybin and DMT, which drastically alter consciousness. 

Chemically, 4-hydroxytryptamine is a tryptamine where the indole ring has been substituted by a hydroxy group at the 4th position. This chemical arrangement makes it a hydroxy indole, a class of substances that can work as pharmacologically active agents to oxidize or chemically alter other substances. 

Research shows that tryptamines like 4-hydroxytryptamine mimic and activate the actions of neurotransmitters in the brain. Neurotransmitters are chemical messengers transmitting signals across a chemical synapse, facilitating communication between neurons and influencing physiological functions such as mood, sleep, and cognition.

4-hydroxytryptamine activates serotonin, a powerful neurotransmitter that affects perception, mood, and thought. 

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Serotonin and 4-hydroxytryptamine also work as neuromodulators.

• Neuromodulators are chemical messengers, like neurotransmitters. But they operate more broadly on multiple neurons with longer-lasting, diffuse effects on the nervous system. 

• As a neurotransmitter and a neuromodulator, 4-hydroxytryptamine can facilitate immediate communication between neurons at specific synapses but also affect broader neural circuits to produce longer-lasting effects on mood, arousal, and other functions. 

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4-Hydroxytryptamine in Magic Mushrooms

Most tryptamine alkaloids that produce potent hallucinations and mystical experiences occur in plants and fungi. More than 200 species of hallucinogenic mushrooms, such as Psilocybe cubensis and Psilocybe baeocystis, are the principal source of many psychoactive tryptamine compounds, including 4-hydroxytryptamine. 

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Tryptamines elicit profound changes in sensory perception, such as:

• Intensifying senses, feelings, memories, and self-awareness
• Producing visual effects, such as trails of geometric patterns and brilliant colors

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Psilocybin and psilocin are the most studied tryptamine alkaloids in magic mushrooms. However, new studies into 4-hydroxytryptamine's chemical structure show it is part of the gene cluster that mediates the biosynthesis of psilocybin and other magic mushroom alkaloids. 

Essentially, 4-hydroxytryptamine is the starting compound, and various chemical reactions occur that convert it into other alkaloids, notably norbaeocystin, baeocystin, aeruginascin, and norpsilocin. 

Norbaeocystin, baeocystin, aeruginascin, and norpsilocin also exist in small quantities in magic mushrooms. However, combined, these alkaloids may have a notable effect through synergizing to amplify therapeutic benefits. 

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• A 1989 paper first proposed a synergistic relationship between psychoactive compounds in magic mushrooms. 
• A 2015 paper reported that the effect of psychedelic mushroom extracts on mice was much stronger than pure psilocybin, suggesting minor alkaloids norbaeocystin, baeocystin, aeruginascin, and norpsilocin are valuable to overall experience. 

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