GPCRs in VR: Human 5HT-2A SNPs & pharmacological signaling alterations of classic psychedelics

Description: In this video, we are joined again by Dr. Asher Brandt, Professor of Biochemistry at the Saint Joseph University, Connecticut, specializing in psychedelic pharmacology. We discuss a recently published paper about how Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms, (SNPs, pronounced “snips”) might alter the pharmacological signaling of potentially therapeutic psychedelics. SNPs are the most common type of genetic variation among people. Specifically, it’s a genomic variant at a single base position in the DNA, which can lead to a single point amino acid mutation in the subsequently synthesized protein. In the study, the authors examined whether sequence variations in the 5-HT2A receptor gene affect the signaling of some of the most used psychedelic drugs such as LSD, mescalin, psilocybin. They examined the in vitro pharmacology of seven non-synonymous SNPs, which give rise to a variant of 5-HT2A serotonin receptors. What they found is that these non-synonymous SNPs exert statistically significant effects on not just the the efficacy but also the potency of four therapeutically relevant psychedelics. What’s mind blowing, in our opinion, is that the in vitro pharmacological effects of the SNP drug actions at 5-HT2A receptor are both amino acid and drug specific. References: Schmitz et al. (2022). 5-HT2A SNPs Alter the Pharmacological Signaling of Potentially Therapeutic Psychedelics. ACS Chem. Neurosci. 2022, 13, 16, 2386–2398. NCBI SNPs Database (dbSNP) url: #GPCR#SNP #pharmacology #polymorphism #mutations #psychedelics #serotonin #LSD #psilocybin #mescaline #drugdiscovery #drugdesign #medicinalchemistry #medchem #compchem Nanome is the leader in collaborative structure-based design through virtual reality. Explore the nanoscale like never before and experience a more intuitive way to interact with small molecules and/or protein structures through the latest in visualization technology. Nanome enables global real-time collaboration and we’re working closely with some of the top pharmaceutical research facilities and academic research institutions. Visit to download Nanome for your XR device! Get started today by downloading Nanome for free on: Oculus Rift/Rift S/Quest Link: SteamVR: Viveport App Lab: SideQuest: To learn more visit: or, follow us on: Twitter & Insta: @nanome_inc Be sure to also check out our blockchain platform, Matryx, which will serve as the backend IP tracking mechanism for Nanome. More info at