Acute Effects of 2C-B Compared With MDMA and Psilocybin in Healthy Subjects

Summary

4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine (2C-B) is a psychoactive substance with reportedly similar acute effects to both the prototypical empathogen 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, Ecstasy) and the classic psychedelic substance psilocybin (contained in "magic, hallucinogenic mushrooms"). Pharmacologically, MDMA mainly releases serotonin (5-HT) via the serotonin transporter (SERT) and psilocybin mainly acts as direct agonist at 5-HT2A receptors. 2C-B interacts with both the 5-HT2A receptor and SERT which is in line with its reported mixed effects profile. However, scientific studies are lacking. There is an increased interest in psychiatric research on the therapeutic properties of MDMA and psilocybin and also on mixed empathogenic-psychedelic substances.

Timeline

Start

2023-08-16

Primary completion

2024-10-20

Completion

2024-11-05

Publications

• Arikci D, Borgulya J, Straumann I, Vizeli P, Luethi D, Thomann J, Rudin D, Vukalovic I, Eckert A, Liechti ME, Holze F. Acute dose-dependent effects of 4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine (2C-B) compared with 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and psilocybin in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study in healthy participants. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2026 Apr 28. doi: 10.1038/s41386-026-02428-9. Online ahead of print.

Drugs

Indications

No indication recorded.