Research chemical
Research chemicals is a term to describe
chemicals which are used for research purposes. Usually, this term is used to describe psychoactives. Many of these psychoactives are hallucinogenics and bear a chemical resemblance to many of the traditional psychoactives e.g
LSD and
mescaline. Psychonauts, neoshamans, and even just plain recreational drug users willingly consume these substances to produce effects ranging from
psychedelic hallucinations, a feeling of enlightenment or
nirvana,
euphoria, and self-confidence. The term research chemicals is often used by chemical suppliers to mask the fact that the substances are meant for human consumption. Some research chemicals on the market are not psychoactive, but can be used as
precursors in the
synthesis of other experimental substances.
Many of these research chemicals were created by pharmacologist
Alexander Shulgin, author of the books
TiHKAL and
PiHKAL. In his books, he documents how to create these chemicals and their effects on human
consciousness.
Most chemical suppliers sell research chemicals in bulk form as powder, not as pills. Active dosages are often in the low milligram range, and thus it is critical for the end user to weigh doses with a precision scale, as opposed to eyeballing. When a chemical increases in popularity, it will often be sold in pill form to reach a wider market. Some of the most popular chemicals are also given street names (like "Foxy" or "Foxy Methoxy" for 5-Meo-DiPT). Once a chemical reaches this kind of popularity, it is usually just a matter of time before it is added to the list of scheduled drugs.
Safety and law
Little if any research has been done on the toxicology or pharmacology of most of these drugs. Few, if any, human or animal studies have been done. Unlike better known drugs like marijuana, which has been used by billions of people worldwide, research chemicals are new and may only have been used by a few dozen people for a few months. The safety of research chemicals is untested and due to the recent development of many of them, laws banning or restricting their use have not been developed yet. However, many of the chemicals fall under the various drug analouge legislations in different countries.
Common research chemicals
Most research chemicals are structural analouges of tryptamines or phenethylamines, but there are also completely unrelated chemicals which are normally considered to be part of the group. It is impossible to determine psychoactivity or other pharmaceutical properties of these chemicals strictly from examining their structure, and many of the substances have common effects whilst structurally different and vice versa. Confusing nomenclature, similar names, and differing naming schemes can all lead to (and is anecdotally known to have led to) potentially hazardous mixups for end users.
- Some common tryptamine based research chemicals:\n** 4-Acetoxy-DiPT, n,n-diisopropyl-4-acetoxytryptamine \n** 4-HO-DiPT, 4-hydroxy-n,n-diisopropyltryptamine \n** 5-MeO-AMT, 5-methoxy-a-methyltryptamine\n** 5-MeO-DET, 5-methoxy-n,n-diethyltryptamine\n** 5-Meo-DIPT, 5-methoxy-di-isopropyl-tryptamine (also known as "Foxy" or "Foxy Methoxy")\n** 5-MeO-MIPT, isopropy-n-methyl-5-methoxyltryptamine\n** AMT, alpha-methyltryptamine\n** DIPT, di-isopropyl-tryptamine \n** DPT, n,n-dipropyltryptamine
\n*Some common phenethylamine based research chemicals:\n**
2C-B, 4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine (also known as "bromo-mescaline")\n**
2C-C, 2,5-dimethyoxy-4-chlorophenethylamine\n**
2C-I, 2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodophenethylamine\n**
2C-E, 2,5-dimethoxy-4-ethyl-phenethylamine\n** 2C-H, 2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine \n**
2C-T-2, 2,5-dimethoxy-4-ethylthiophenethylamine \n** 2C-T-4, 2,5-dimethoxy-4(i)-propylthiophenethylamine \n**
2C-T-7, 2,5-dimethoxy-4-(n)-propylthiophenethylamine\n**
2C-T-21, 2,5-dimethoxy-4-(2-fluoroethylthio)phenethylamine
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