A-41988
A synthetic azacannabinoid from Abbott, studied in the 1970s and then abandoned.
Harm-reduction warning
No characterised human dose: animal / in vitro data only. Effect profile, safety margin and acute toxicity are not documented in human clinical practice. Extremely potent compound: severe effects, seizures and deaths reported in the literature.
C₂₈H₃₂FNO₂
CAS 52763-30-1
- Family
- Synthetic CB receptor agonistResearch ligand or medicine
- Molar mass
- 433.60 g/mol
Updated on
In plain terms
A-41988 is a laboratory molecule developed in the 1970s by the American laboratory Abbott, from the chemical skeleton of cannabis. It does not exist in the plant and was never marketed: it has been studied only in a few old papers, including a small trial in patients with raised pressure in the eye.
Receptors and activity
Target network
- Activates
The lower the cited value, the closer the target sits to A-41988: one ring per factor of 100. A target with no measured value stays on the edge.
Where these targets live
Where each target has been found in humans, according to the cited studies. The map shows the target, not an effect of A-41988.
CB1CB1 found in 7 regions of the body
- Basal gangliadenseMost dense in basal ganglia outflow nuclei1
- CerebellumdenseVery dense in the cerebellum1
- HippocampusdenseVery high concentrations in the hippocampus2
- AmygdaladenseHigh concentrations in the amygdala2
- CortexpresentPresent throughout the neocortex2
- Adipose tissuepresentExpressed in adipose tissue3
- GutpresentColonic epithelium, smooth muscle and plexus4
Map sources
- Herkenham M et al. Cannabinoid receptor localization in brain. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 1990 (new tab)
- Glass M et al. Cannabinoid receptors in the human brain: a detailed anatomical and quantitative autoradiographic study in the fetal, neonatal and adult human brain. Neuroscience, 1997 (new tab)
- Engeli S et al. Activation of the peripheral endocannabinoid system in human obesity. Diabetes, 2005 (new tab)
- Wright K et al. Differential expression of cannabinoid receptors in the human colon: cannabinoids promote epithelial wound healing. Gastroenterology, 2005 (new tab)
Cited values
- CB1Agonistno measured value cited
Agonism presumed from the cannabinoid-like in vivo profile and the structural kinship with THC; no binding or activity measurement at CB1 was found
Pharmacology
A-41988 belongs to a family of azacannabinoids developed at Abbott Laboratories: the carbocyclic ring of Δ6a,10a-tetrahydrocannabinol is replaced by a piperidine whose nitrogen carries a propargyl group, and the pentyl chain of THC by a 4-(4-fluorophenyl)-1-methylbutyl chain. For this series, Winn et al. (1976) describe cannabinoid-type pharmacological activity in animals (analgesic, tranquilliser, antihypertensive, hypnotic, antisecretory, antiulcer, antidiarrhoeal), the compound with the 1-methyl-4-(4-fluorophenyl)butyl chain being among the most potent. The data were produced before cannabinoid receptors were identified: no affinity or functional activity at CB1 or CB2 was found. In humans, the only trial found, randomised and double-masked in patients with ocular hypertension, showed no lowering of intraocular pressure with BW29Y at the dose tested (a single oral dose), whereas the comparator BW146Y did lower it; only mild subjective side effects and an impaired time production test were noted (Tiedeman et al. 1981).
Key sources.
- Winn M et al. Drugs derived from cannabinoids. 5. Δ6a,10a-Tetrahydrocannabinol and heterocyclic analogs containing aromatic side chains. J Med Chem, 1976 (new tab)PMID 817021
- Lee CM et al. Cannabinoids. Synthesis and central nervous system activity of 8-substituted 10-hydroxy-5,5-dimethyl-5H-[1]benzopyrano[4,3-c]pyridine and derivatives. J Med Chem, 1977 (new tab)PMID 915915
- Lee CM et al. New azacannabinoids highly active in the central nervous system. J Med Chem, 1983 (new tab)PMID 6681843
- Zaugg HE, Kyncl J. New antihypertensive cannabinoids. J Med Chem, 1983 (new tab)PMID 6827538
- Tiedeman JS et al. Effect of synthetic cannabinoids on elevated intraocular pressure. Ophthalmology, 1981 (BW29Y = A-41988 according to the PubChem synonyms) (new tab)PMID 7015221
- ANSM, decision of 22/05/2024 amending the list of substances classified as narcotics (generic family of the benzo[c]chromene nucleus) (new tab)
- PubChem, A-41988, CID 3085018 (identifiers and properties) (new tab)
History
- Source
- An entirely synthetic molecule with no known natural occurrence. It comes from the medicinal chemistry programme of Abbott Laboratories on cannabinoid-nucleus derivatives, run in the 1970s; it is known neither in hemp nor in any living organism.
Origin
Laboratory synthesis
No biosynthetic pathway: A-41988 is a synthetic compound built on a benzopyrano[4,3-c]pyridine nucleus, a cannabinoid-type skeleton whose carbocyclic ring is replaced by a piperidine; hemp, whose enzymatic pathway starts from CBGA, produces nothing comparable.
Legal framework
- European Union
The substance is not listed in the Annex to Council Framework Decision 2004/757/JHA (consolidated version of 12 January 2026), which lists the new psychoactive substances controlled at European Union level; control is a matter for national law. No marketing authorisation was found; the compound is described only in the research literature.
- France
Not classified: A-41988 (BW29Y) is not named on the ANSM consolidated list of narcotics (updated 16/02/2026). On a literal reading, it falls neither within the tetrahydrocannabinols entry (annex III) nor within the generic benzo[c]chromene ring family (annex IV, decisions of 22 May and 3 June 2024), which presupposes a carbocyclic ring A: here, that ring is replaced by an N-propargylated tetrahydropyridine (chromeno[4,3-c]pyridine nucleus). No other generic family of annex IV covers it. No marketing authorisation was found.
Sources: EUR-Lex, UNODC, CND, ANSM, IUPHAR/BPS, ChEBI, EUDA. Our method.
Classification
Family, origin and source verification
- Family
Synthetic CB receptor agonist › Research ligand or medicine
- Class
classical
- Verification
Classification, sources and binding values checked on 20 October 2026; text read against its sources and Wikipedia.
- Wikipedia (English)
Article paired by the molecule's structure (InChIKey), revision read on 19 October 2026. Read as a second opinion, never cited as a source.
References
- Winn M et al. Drugs derived from cannabinoids. 5. Δ6a,10a-Tetrahydrocannabinol and heterocyclic analogs containing aromatic side chains. J Med Chem, 1976 (new tab)PMID 817021
- Lee CM et al. Cannabinoids. Synthesis and central nervous system activity of 8-substituted 10-hydroxy-5,5-dimethyl-5H-[1]benzopyrano[4,3-c]pyridine and derivatives. J Med Chem, 1977 (new tab)PMID 915915
- Lee CM et al. New azacannabinoids highly active in the central nervous system. J Med Chem, 1983 (new tab)PMID 6681843
- Zaugg HE, Kyncl J. New antihypertensive cannabinoids. J Med Chem, 1983 (new tab)PMID 6827538
- Tiedeman JS et al. Effect of synthetic cannabinoids on elevated intraocular pressure. Ophthalmology, 1981 (BW29Y = A-41988 according to the PubChem synonyms) (new tab)PMID 7015221
- ANSM, decision of 22/05/2024 amending the list of substances classified as narcotics (generic family of the benzo[c]chromene nucleus) (new tab)
- PubChem, A-41988, CID 3085018 (identifiers and properties) (new tab)
Identifiers
Names
- IUPAC name
- 8-[5-(4-fluorophenyl)pentan-2-yl]-5,5-dimethyl-2-prop-2-ynyl-3,4-dihydro-1H-chromeno[4,3-c]pyridin-10-ol
- Other names
- BW29Y · Abbott 41988 · Abbott-41988 · A 41988 · TCMDC-124277
Identifiers
- Formula
- C₂₈H₃₂FNO₂
- CAS
- 52763-30-1
- PubChem CID
- 3085018(new tab)
- InChIKey
- UIDOJGIFVOOMLY-UHFFFAOYSA-N
- SMILES
- CC(CCCC1=
CC= C(C= C1) F) C2= CC3= C(C4= C(CCN(C4) CC#C) C(O3) (C) C) C(= C2) O
LLM ingestion format: a structured superset of the entry (identifiers, binding, versioned legal status). Full corpus.