“In vivo biosynthesis of N,N-dimethyltryptamine, 5-MeO-N,N-dimethyltryptamine, and bufotenine in E. coli”
Metabolic Engineering May 23, 2023 Lucas M. Friedberg, Abhishek K. Sen, Quynh Nguyen et al. 22 citations
Psychedelic tryptamines such as DMT, 5-MeO-DMT, and bufotenine, found naturally in plants and animals, show clinical promise for treating anxiety and depression. Using genetic and metabolic engineering, researchers developed a biosynthetic pathway in Escherichia coli to produce these compounds. With tryptophan supplementation, DMT reached maximum titers of 74.7 ± 10.5 mg/L in fed-batch 2-L bioreactors. De novo DMT production from glucose achieved 14.0 mg/L, and the study reports the first microbial production of 5-MeO-DMT and bufotenine in vivo. This work establishes a foundation for further optimization toward industrial-scale production.