Hi All

Im wondering if we have much information surrounding what's happening to our neurotransmitters during mescaline use. Do any studies exist with regard to its re uptake inhibition with both dopamine and serotonin?

Mescaline is a very strong stimulant for me. If I eat half a gram of crystal at 9am then I do not sleep at all until the same time the next morning (however by then my circadian rhythm is a bit confused so I usually end up staying awake until that evening so some 36 hours after ingestion). Even a small dose of 70mg will keep me very alert for a minimum of ten hours.

It feels to me like the re uptake inhibition for dopamine is quite strong. Also once the peak has passed the long tail of the experience and cactus headspace feels like there is some serotonin re uptake inhibition happening as I feel extremely pleasant and want to connect with people, I usually end up writing long emails and messaging loved ones while coming down.

The following days I certainly don't feel optimal from a brain chemistry standpoint. I feel very present and the noisy brain has definitely been turned down however my critical decision making lags behind a bit. No where near what MDMA or other amphetamines would do to me however reminiscent of them for sure. Perhaps that has more to do with the lack of sleep.

I just can't find much online about this and Im keen to hear peoples thoughts and experiences as well as look at some hard science if it exists.

I adore mescaline however the duration is prohibitive for my stage in life right now with young children.

I was able to dig up all of two studies on the subject.

Dinis-Oliveira, Ricardo Jorge, Carolina Lança Pereira, and Diana Dias da Silva. "Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic aspects of peyote and mescaline: clinical and forensic repercussions." Current molecular pharmacology 12.3 (2019): 184.

Rinkel, Max. "Pharmacodynamics of LSD and mescaline." The Journal of nervous and mental disease 125.3 (1957): 424-426.

One of the references in that first paper from dreamoar seems to suggest that - in rats, at least - norepinephrine is displaced only by amphetamine and mescaline's action is largely upon serotonin. But, of course, they didn't look at dopamine so it hasn't really answered your question. The full paper is paywalled at ASPET but here is a short version:
https://jpet.aspetjourna.../content/181/3/387.short