Tentative identification of in vitro metabolites of O‐acetylpsilocin (psilacetin, 4‐AcO‐DMT) by UHPLC‐Q‐Orbitrap MS
Drug Testing and Analysis March 21, 2022 Wenya Zhai, Le Li, Junbo Zhao et al. 5 citations
4-Acetoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (4-AcO-DMT, psilacetin) is a synthetic psychedelic that may act as a precursor to psilocin, but its metabolism was poorly understood. Incubating 4-AcO-DMT with pooled human liver microsomes produced 15 metabolites: 12 from phase I and 3 from phase II reactions. Transformations included hydrolysis, hydroxylation, N-demethylation, oxidation, and glucuronic acid conjugation. The hydrolysis product was the most abundant. For forensic detection of 4-AcO-DMT use, the beta-hydroxylation metabolite (M2-1) is recommended as a biomarker. These findings may help predict in vivo metabolism and assist drug testing.