Fasoracetam | Fasotropil™

Properties: Just as its name implies, fasoracetam belongs to the family of racetams – compounds that benefit cognitive abilities. Nevertheless, fasoracetam differs from other racetams both structurally and functionally. As all other racetams, fasoracetam influences the production of acetylcholine – an excitatory neurotransmitter responsible for learning and associating pieces of knowledge. The supplementation of fasoracetam increases the amount of choline absorbed by the brain, which is the direct substrate for acetylcholine production. Moreover, it stimulates the secretion of this important neurotransmitter in the synapses. That’s why the mind acquires new information faster and recalls the old ones easier. 

However, this is not the reason why fasoracetam is so unique in the context of other compounds from this group. It has one more function that makes it so special – it influences a pair of neurotransmitters that have an antagonistic function. The first – glutamate – has an excitatory effect on neurons and is fundamental to learning. The second – GABA – has an inhibitory effect on nerve cells, thus it helps to calm down and build up stress resilience. Therefore the subtle effect of fasoracetam, related to selective activation of both neurotransmitter receptors, works twofold. On one hand, it increases the mechanism of long-term potentiation (LTP), which is crucial for information acquisition. Simultaneously, it helps to wind down and relax. For these reasons, whenever we are facing tasks that require full concentration and high efficiency, yet bring about some extra stress – this supplement straight from Japan will certainly come in handy.

Occurrence: Just like the other racetams, fasoracetam does not occur naturally. Instead, it is chemically synthesized in laboratories. For the first time it was obtained in the 90s by Japanese scientists from a pharmaceutical company called Nippon Shinyaku.

Biochemistry: Fasoracetam (NS-105) is an organic chemical compound classified as a racetam. As all other substances from this group, its molecule contains a 2-pyrrolidone ring, which is a derivative of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). However, its structure differs a bit: the acetamide bond to which the piperidine is attached to the 5th carbon and not the heterocyclic nitrogen of the 2-pyrrolidone ring. This evidently influences its properties, which stand out from other racetams. It is quickly and completely absorbed from the digestive tract. High water solubility guarantees increased bioavailability. It is not metabolized by the liver and about 90% of the ingested fasoracetam is excreted unchanged in the urine. Further, it easily crosses the blood-brain barrier, where it interacts mainly with the metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluR), which are strongly involved in brain neuroplasticity. Moreover, it binds to GABA-B receptors, simultaneously increasing the density of this neurotransmitter. Fasoracetam is the only racetam that upregulates the synthesis of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) – a secondary messenger involved in most of the biological changes in the body.

Additionally, it stimulates neuronal reuptake of choline, the main substrate needed for the production of acetylcholine – an excitatory neurotransmitter. Thereby, it indirectly increases the density of acetylcholine. What is more, it promotes the secretion of this neurotransmitter in synapses. Last but not least, it has anxiolytic and antidepressant properties.

Fun fact: Up to this day scientists discovered 17 compounds that belong to the group of racetams. Besides fasoracetam, the group includes popular nootropic substances such as: aniracetam, oxiracetam or coluracetam. The other interesting examples are brivaracetam and omberacetam (commonly known as noopept).