Mesembrine alkaloid

Mesembrine alkaloids are a chemical class of organic compounds defined by a cis-fused octahydroindole core carrying an aryl group at the ring-fusion carbon. Members differ in the substituents on that aryl ring, in the oxidation state of the six-membered ring, and in the group attached to the ring nitrogen. The family occurs in Sceletium tortuosum, where mesembrine and its relatives act chiefly as serotonin reuptake inhibitors with additional PDE4 inhibition. The 3a-aryl octahydroindole skeleton is the defining structural feature of the class.