4DQSAR
Bluelighter
- Joined
- Feb 3, 2025
- Messages
- 5,453
So it's a prodrug, just like codeine. The only difference being that it's the CYP4A4 rather than the CYP2D6 enzyme responsible. I note that they even assign 14% as the amount coverted in a single human cadaver but go on to note that the natural an commecial herb wouldn't contain as much as the extracts and that it would be impossible to kill oneself even if you tried to because it would take so much of the natural extract.
Now it is known that the genetic makeup of a person will decide when on the range of non-metabolize to super-metabolizer lies. So we have no way of knowing from a single sample if that's an average.
I will explain why that is important. It's known that people of SE Asian descent are mostly classed as non or poor metabolizers, people of African heitage tend to be supermetabolizers.
In North America I've been informed that within certain circles, a drink called 'lean' has become ever so popular. While I honestly don't know anything about that scene, if the people in that scene share some genetic elements with those of the peoples of Africa, they might well fall into the super-metabolizer range.
I note that mitragynine and codeine appear to be toxic in about the same range.
You know, I'm actually quite surprised that no idiot has considered acetylating 7-OH mitragynine because it's very likely that it will reduce the melting-point and make a prodrug that is hydrolized to the active by non-specific blood enzymes in a matter of a few minutes. Making the product more lipopholic would also mean it would tend to accumulate in fatty tissue and do so more quickly. A trully terrible thing to do as it's only ever going to end with avoidable human misary - but I've I've thought of it, I assume whoever is behind making pills would know of it. I only used the acetyl ester by way of demonstration, I'm sure other esters would work and may even be preferable.
That's why I think herbal kratom is likely to be like raw opium. Yes, you could eat a vast block of raw opium on purpose, but I suggest it would be hard if not impossible to do so by accident.

