Scandinavian journal of clinical and laboratory investigation
January 1, 2005
J Kärkkäinen, T Forsström, J Tornaeus et al.
50 citations
Bufotenine and N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) are hallucinogenic compounds naturally produced in the human body from serotonin and tryptamine. Using highly sensitive mass spectrometry, researchers detected large amounts of bufotenine in human stools, suggesting a role in intestinal function, while only small amounts were found in somatic or neural tissues and none in blood. The compounds may originate from epithelial cells of the intestine and kidney, though synthesis by gut bacteria is possible. Rapid breakdown by monoamine oxidase or limited formation in most tissues explains their low levels elsewhere.
Scandinavian journal of clinical and laboratory investigation
January 1, 2001
T Forsström, J Tuominen, J Kärkkäinen
41 citations
A new method using high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) was developed to measure bufotenine, DMT, 5-MeODMT, and NMT in urine. The method identifies compounds by retention times and two fragment ions, quantifies them with electrospray ionization and multiple reaction monitoring, and uses solid-phase extraction to clean samples. Applied to urine from surgical, medical, and psychiatric patients, only bufotenine appeared in significant amounts, up to 34 micrograms per liter. Consistent with earlier findings, bufotenine excretion was higher in psychiatric patients than in somatic patients. The paper presents the method, procedure, considerations, statistical evaluations, and sample spectra.
Psychiatry research
September 29, 1995
J Kärkkäinen, M Räisänen, M O Huttunen et al.
17 citations
Among violent offenders, those with paranoid personality traits tend to have higher urinary levels of bufotenin, a substance measured by mass spectrometry. In drug-free patients, bufotenin excretion was positively linked to suspiciousness and negatively linked to socialization, two strongly interdependent personality traits. In drug users, bufotenin excretion correlated positively with social desirability and negatively with irritability, but not with suspiciousness. The study found no association between bufotenin levels and violence toward family members, contrary to an earlier report. These results support the earlier finding linking bufotenin to paranoid traits in violent offenders.