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Low-DMT production, causes depression?

PwnX

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I probably don't know what I'm talking about, but I've heard that low doses of DMT have a short-term (lasting a week or two), but powerful antidepressant effect. I've also heard many depressed people rarely dream. I assume that endogenous DMT plays a role in dreaming. Could it be possible that certain forms of depression are the result of a lack of endogenous DMT production, and not serotonin/dopamine/norepinephrine? I'm just taking a wild guess here. 8(
 
PwnX said:
Could it be possible that certain forms of depression are the result of a lack of endogenous DMT production, and not serotonin/dopamine/norepinephrine? I'm just taking a wild guess here. 8(

I think the lack of DMT would be linked to the Serotonin levels, as they are very close to each other... (serotonin, melatonin, and DMT are close chemically...)
Anyway, the DMT is made in the brain from serotonin, isn't it?

So if depression is caused by a lack of Serotonin, it also induces a lack of DMT...
 
Yeah I think you are right, but surely if DMT alone can relieve depression, SSRI's are unneccesary? I guess if it didn't have any recreational value and wasn't scheduled, drug companies would try and make something of it.
 
I've definitely found low doses of DMT to clear up depression and damn near anything else that feels wrong in the body for a few days at least, especially depression. And although I wouldn't recommend it, some people have reported success in using very low doses to clear up schizophrenic symptoms as well. But given the troubles that can result from mixing schizophrenia and psychedelics, it's not something I'm trying to advocate.
 
Overall it'll be the levels of serotonin being altered that impacts on the depression, not endogenous levels of DMT; after all AMT is a very efficient antidepressant (from personal experience), but that in no way alters any endogenous DMT production
 
Through what mechanism does this occur?
I know AMT inhibits MAO, but what about DMT?
Or is this not the reason for the antidepressant effect?
 
I went through about all the studies of endogenous DMT a few years ago. Some interesting stuff but mostly just speculations.
 
MattPsy said:
Through what mechanism does this occur?
I know AMT inhibits MAO, but what about DMT?
Or is this not the reason for the antidepressant effect?

The MAOI activity of AMT is only marginally more than that of amphetamine, so it's very doubtful if the antidepressant effect is via MAO inhibition. Speaking from personal experience of AMT's effects, I'm inclined towards it being an antidepressant by action on levels of serotonin
 
DMT does not significantly inhibit MAO. MAO chews up DMT very quickly. This is why you can't get high from oral DMT unless you take an MAOI along with it.
 
Endogenous psychoactive tryptamines reconsidered: an anxiolytic role for dimethyltryptamine.
Jacob MS, Presti DE.
Med Hypotheses. 2005;64(5):930-7.

The presence of the potent hallucinogenic psychoactive chemical N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in the human body has puzzled scientists for decades. Endogenous DMT was investigated in the 1960s and 1970s and it was proposed that DMT was involved in psychosis and schizophrenia. This hypothesis developed from comparisons of the blood and urine of schizophrenic and control subjects. However, much of this research proved inconclusive and conventional thinking has since held that trace levels of DMT, and other endogenous psychoactive tryptamines, are insignificant metabolic byproducts. The recent discovery of a G-protein-coupled, human trace amine receptor has triggered a reappraisal of the role of compounds present in limited concentrations in biological systems. Interestingly enough, DMT and other psychoactive tryptamine hallucinogens elicit a robust response at the trace amine receptor. While it is currently accepted that serotonin 5-HT(2A) receptors play a pivotal role in the activity of hallucinogenic/psychedelic compounds, we propose that the effects induced by exogenous DMT administration, especially at low doses, are due in part to activity at the trace amine receptor. Furthermore, we suggest that endogenous DMT interacts with the TA receptor to produce a calm and relaxed mental state, which may suppress, rather than promote, symptoms of psychosis. This hypothesis may help explain the inconsistency in the early analysis of endogenous DMT in humans. Finally, we propose that amphetamine action at the TA receptor may contribute to the calming effects of amphetamine and related drugs, especially at low doses.

Full text: https://rikki.fi/tajkor/bl/Endogenous_tryptamines.pdf
 
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