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Descarboxylysergic acid, or 8-descarboxylysergic acid, also known as 9,10-didehydro-6-methylergoline or as 6-methyl-9-ergolene, is a drug of the ergoline family related to lysergic acid and lysergamides like lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). It is the analogue of lysergic acid in which the carboxyl group at the C8 position of the molecule has been removed. Descarboxylysergic acid was synthesized in an attempt to help elucidate the minimum structural requirements for biological activity of ergoline and lysergamide drugs like LSD.

In contrast to lysergic acid, which is said to have "very unexceptional biological activity", descarboxylysergic acid was, surprisingly, found to produce effects in mice that were described as remarkably similar to those of LSD. However, it was said that the specific tests performed were not reliably indicative of hallucinogenic effects in humans. Moreover, no other assays of hallucinogen-type effects were carried out, and descarboxylysergic acid is not known to have been tested in humans. Subsequent research by David E. Nichols found that descarboxylysergic acid did not show LSD-like effects in animal drug discrimination tests. According to Nichols, the simplest ergoline with definite known psychoactive effects in humans is lysergic acid amide (LSA; ergine).

Descarboxylysergic acid showed effects in preclinical research suggestive of serotonergic, adrenergic, and dopaminergic activities, for instance prolactin inhibition, oxytocic, and sympatholytic effects. Although descarboxylysergic acid was significantly less potent than certain other ergolines like LSD and ergonine, it was said to still show high biological activity, comparable to drugs like ergonovine and methysergide. As a result, it has been concluded that the 8-position side chain is non-essential for activity, though it does appear to be required for extremely high potency as in drugs like LSD.

Descarboxylysergic acid was first synthesized and described by Bach, Hall, and Kornfeld in 1974. It was subsequently studied by Nichols and his former student Robert A. Oberlender, the creator of lisdexamfetamine, in the 1980s.

References

1. ^ Hauth, Hartmut (1979). "Chemical Aspects of Ergot Derivatives with Central Dopaminergic Activity". Dopaminergic Ergot Derivatives and Motor Function. Elsevier. p. 23–32. doi:10.1016/b978-0-08-024408-2.50007-5. ISBN 978-0-08-024408-2. Kornfeld et al. (ref. 12) have likewise attempted to identify the part of the ergoline structure responsible for its pharmacological activity. They have shown that one of the properties of racemic 9.10-didehydro-6-methyl-ergoline (Fig. 10) is the inhibition of prolactin secretion. However, the potency of this activity is less than 10 % of that of ergonine. Fig. 10. dl-9,10-Didehydro-6-methyl-ergoline = dl-6-Methyl-9-ergolene = dl-Descarboxylysergic acid These findings once again confirm the observation that although the ergoline skeleton contains dopaminergic and, obviously, also serotoninergic and noradrenergic components, it is the substituents alone that are responsible for the profile and intensity of the biological activity. The proof is to be found in publications reporting on the effects of substitution in ergolines and ergopeptines on biological activity (ref. 6,7,13).
2. ^ Nichols DE (2018). "Chemistry and Structure-Activity Relationships of Psychedelics". Curr Top Behav Neurosci. 36: 1–43. doi:10.1007/7854_2017_475. PMID 28401524. 3.1 Amide Modifications of Lysergic Acid Derivatives The simplest ergoline with human psychoactive properties is lysergic acid amide (23, ergine), reported by Hofmann and Tscherter to be the active component in Rivea corymbosa seeds used by the Aztecs in various magical potions and ointments (Hofmann 1971). If the C(8) amide substituent is removed completely to provide the 8-descarboxy 24, the compound is reported to produce a mouse behavioral profile "remarkably similar to that shown by LSD" (Bach et al. 1974). Unfortunately, no other assays were carried out, nor were human studies carried out that would elucidate whether the presence of an amide substituent is an absolute requirement for activity. That is an important question because even slight modifications to the diethylamide moiety of LSD result in dramatic losses of in vivo activity. With respect to lysergic acid amides, it should be pointed out that the high in vivo potency of LSD seems to depend on the presence of the N,N-diethylamide moiety.
3. ^ Nichols, David E. (2012). "Structure–activity relationships of serotonin 5‐HT 2A agonists". Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Membrane Transport and Signaling. 1 (5): 559–579. doi:10.1002/wmts.42. ISSN 2190-460X. Retrieved 19 January 2025. Studies of the Amide Portion of Lysergic Acid Derivatives The simplest ergoline with human psychoactive properties, and presumably 5-HT2A agonist activity, is lysergic acid amide (15, ergine), which was reported by Hofmann and Tscherter36 to be the active component in Rivea corymbosa seeds, used by the Aztecs in various magical potions and ointments (Figure 12). Surprisingly, if the C(8) amide substituent is removed completely to give 8-descarboxy lysergic acid 16, the compound is reported to produce a behavioral profile in mice 'remarkably similar to that shown by LSD'.37 FIGURE 12 | The structures of lysergic acid amide 15 (ergine) and 8-descarboxy lysergic acid 16.
4. ^ Bach NJ, Hall DA, Kornfeld EC (March 1974). "Descarboxylysergic acid (9,10-didehydro-6-methylergoline)". J Med Chem. 17 (3): 312–314. doi:10.1021/jm00249a011. PMID 4811227.
5. ^ Nichols DE (June 1976). "Structural correlation between apomorphine and LSD: involvement of dopamine as well as serotonin in the actions of hallucinogens". J Theor Biol. 59 (1): 167–177. doi:10.1016/s0022-5193(76)80030-6. PMID 7711. Another important point which should be defined is the relative importance of the substituent at the C-8 position of LSD. It has been demonstrated that small changes in substitution on the amide nitrogen produce, in every instance, a molecule with decreased hallucinogenic activity when compared with the diethylamide (Hofmann, 1968). Speculation concerning the role of the amide function of LSD as a result of this finding continues. However, Bach, Hall & Kornfeld (1974) have shown that 8-descarboxylysergic acid, completely lacking an 8 substituent, still retains a profile of activity in mice similar to LSD. Activity of this compound on rabbit aortic strips was demonstrated to be comparable to ergonovine, and on rat stomach strips was about one-third the potency of methysergide as a serotonin antagonist. Thus the importance of C-8 substitution may lie in metabolic, distribution, or conformational factors, rather than to some receptor requirement for binding at this site.
6. ^ Hurt, Stephen D. (1976). "The synthesis of analogs of the ergot alkaloids". eScholarship. Retrieved 19 January 2025. The remainder of the work in this series was undertaken because 75 that descarboxylysergic acid (l32) wº of the report by Kornfeld, et al. has interesting pharmacological properties. In mouse behavioral Screening * showed a profile of activities remarkably similar to that shown by LSD, although, previous studies have shown that such observations are not reliably predictive of hallucinogenic activity in man. Descarboxylysergic acid showed high oxytocic activity and moderate prolactin inhibition.
7. ^ Oberlender, Robert Arthur (1989). "Stereoselective aspects of hallucinogenic drug action and drug discrimination studies of entactogens". Purdue e-Pubs. Retrieved 19 January 2025. This analogue, descarboxylysergic acid, was synthesized by Bach et al. (1974) and seemed to retain LSD-like activity in a simple mouse assay, suggesting that the 8-substituent is not necessary. However, the lack of LSD-like DS properties of descarboxylysergic acid (Oberlender and Nichols, unpublished data)
8. "PODCAST 26: An interview with Vyvanse inventor Dr. Robert Oberlender". Patreon. 23 August 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2025.

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• Descarboxylysergic acid - isomer design

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