Tryptophan is an amino acid built on the indole ring: (2S)-2-amino-3-(1H-indol-3-yl)propanoic acid (PubChem, tryptophan). Living things use it to make proteins and, after a few chemical steps, a family of indole compounds.
In psilocybin mushrooms, the enzyme PsiD removes tryptophan’s carboxyl group to make tryptamine, and three further enzymes finish the route to psilocybin (Fricke et al., 2017). In mammals, the textbook route to DMT also starts with tryptophan, which a different enzyme, AADC, turns into tryptamine before two methylation steps (Barker, 2018).
Lab studies of mushrooms sometimes measure tryptophan alongside psilocybin. A 2025 analysis of 42 strains from nine species quantified eight tryptophan-derived compounds and used tryptophan and tryptamine among its reference standards (Cohen et al., 2025). Having tryptophan in the diet does not mean the body makes psychedelic amounts of anything; whether the human body makes meaningful DMT at all is unresolved.
Sources
- PubChem: tryptophan (CID 6305)
- Fricke et al., 2017, Angewandte Chemie: psilocybin biosynthesis
- Barker, 2018, Frontiers in Neuroscience
- Cohen et al., 2025, Scientific Reports: tryptamines in 42 strains
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