Pop culture has depicted the acid trip in movies, television, music, and so many mediums since its hallucinogenic properties were discovered. Albert Hoffman began synthesizing lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) from ergot fungus in hopes of stimulating the circulatory and respiratory systems. The 25th iteration of the product turned out to be an extra special batch that caused the chemist to trip out after absorbing some through his skin. He ended up riding out the trip literally on his bike.
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This birthed a psychedelic tradition of Bicycle Day. On April 19th, psychonauts eat acid and ride bikes in Hoffman’s honor. It also kicked off a revolution among psychiatrists experimenting with LSD therapy for addiction and mental health disorders. Government intervention and schedule I classification pushed the mainstream prescription and use to the underground, fueling how the world sees LSD today. However, the psychiatric potential of the hallucinogen remains, and a new analog seeks to find out exactly what it is.
New LSD analog promises therapeutic potential
Mental health professionals see value in LSD for increasing neuronal growth. This process is helpful for depression and related disorders. Unfortunately, hallucinations and other psychedelic distortions can trigger symptoms of conditions like schizophrenia. UC Davis researchers believe they have discovered a new analog that reduces the trippy parts and maximizes the helpful bits of LSD called JRT.
Researchers transposed two atoms to end up with a compound that touts lower hallucinogenic potential and fewer adverse effects with wider therapeutic applications. This took five years of work, first on cells and then on mice. The iteration of classic LSD has not been tested on humans.
The mice showed a 46 percent increase in the spine where primary neural connections go down. JRT did not induce psychedelic states or promote schizophrenic gene expression, both of which are common with traditional LSD. JRT is believed to be 100-fold more potent than the lowest dose of ketamine as an antidepressant.
The analog comes after another UC Davis lab psychedelics research breakthrough. The university announced a new rapid, non-invasive method to measure frontal cortex brain activity in summer 2024. Ca2+-activated Split-TurboID (CaSt) will likely be instrumental in developing this adapted LSD that is structurally similar to traditional acid but with a chemical modification.
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UC Davis researchers are testing JRT on other disease models, improving how they synthesize it, and creating new, more effective analogs. This discovery is in its early days but cites the vast pharmacological potential of psychedelics. With continued dedicated research, it will become clear that these compounds do far more than trip people out.
