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Curated peer-reviewed research organised by topic. Each entry links to the source paper and provides a plain-language summary so that researchers, journalists, and clinicians can locate primary material quickly.
About this library
Two layers, in order of how most readers will use them. First, a small set of kratom.com topic briefs — long-form syntheses of the literature on key topics, written by the editorial team with citations to primary sources. Second, the underlying source papers themselves, grouped by topic with plain-language summaries and links out to the publishing journal.
Inclusion criteria for the source-paper layer: peer-reviewed publications in recognised journals, or widely-cited preprints in cases where a newer result has not yet been formally published. The library is not exhaustive — for the fuller record, PubMed and ClinicalTrials.gov are authoritative; the American Kratom Association also maintains a curated science page.
Long-form summaries by the kratom.com editorial team. Each brief synthesises multiple peer-reviewed sources and is internally linked.
kratom.com Editorial · Independent literature review
Synthesis brief, 2024
A literature summary on the dominant alkaloid in Mitragyna speciosa — partial μ-opioid agonism, α2-adrenergic activity, hepatic metabolism, and the published human pharmacokinetic record. Cites Kruegel 2016, Obeng 2020, Trakulsrichai 2015, Huestis 2024.
kratom.com Editorial
Synthesis brief, 2024
A literature summary on 7-OH — natural-leaf concentrations, μ-opioid receptor pharmacology, and the regulatory distinction between whole-leaf 7-OH and concentrated or synthetic 7-OH products. Cites Kruegel 2016, Obeng 2020, Henningfield 2022 respiratory, FDA Hiding-in-Plain-Sight communication.
kratom.com Editorial
Synthesis brief, 2024
How mitragynine, 7-hydroxymitragynine, and the broader alkaloid set shift with geographic source, harvest timing, and post-harvest processing. Includes a candid read on what vein-colour categories do and do not tell you. Cites Sengnon 2023, Sharma 2019.
kratom.com Editorial
Synthesis brief, 2024
A summary of what is currently known about long-term kratom use — observational use-pattern data, regulatory abuse-potential analyses, and preclinical safety pharmacology. Cites Garcia-Romeu 2020, Henningfield 2022 eight-factor, Henningfield 2022 respiratory.
Selected papers organised by topic. Each card opens the source publication in a new tab.
Receptor binding, pharmacokinetics, and mechanism-of-action studies.
Kruegel AC, Gassaway MM, Kapoor A, et al.
Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2016, 138(21):6754–6764
Kruegel et al. demonstrated that mitragynine itself has weak opioid receptor affinity, while its metabolite 7-hydroxymitragynine drives most of the opioid-like activity observed in animal models. Established the foundation for G-protein-biased signalling discussion.
Obeng S, Kamble SH, Reeves ME, et al.
Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 2020, 63(1):433–439
Obeng et al. characterised binding affinities and functional effects across μ-, δ-, κ-opioid and α2-adrenergic receptors for mitragynine, 7-hydroxymitragynine, and several minor indole alkaloids — alongside metabolic-stability and plasma-protein-binding data that inform PK predictions. Mitragynine shows partial μ-opioid agonism with substantially weaker receptor affinity than 7-hydroxymitragynine.
Scheduling analyses, long-term use patterns, and real-world surveillance data.
Henningfield JE, Wang DW, Huestis MA, et al.
Frontiers in Pharmacology, 2022, 13:775073
Henningfield et al. updated the FDA's eight-factor scheduling analysis with five years of additional research and surveillance data, and reaffirmed that kratom does not meet the threshold for Schedule I classification. Widely cited in the case against federal scheduling.
Garcia-Romeu A, Cox DJ, Smith KE, Dunn KE, Griffiths RR
Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 2020, 208:107849
Garcia-Romeu et al. reported survey data from ~2,800 kratom users on dose, frequency, reasons for use, and self-reported effects. One of the larger real-world datasets informing the policy discussion.
Preclinical safety pharmacology and adverse-event characterisation.
Henningfield JE, Rodricks JV, Magnuson AM, Huestis MA
Psychopharmacology (Berl), 2022, 239(12):3793–3804
Henningfield et al. compared the respiratory effects of oral mitragynine and oxycodone in rats. Oxycodone produced dose-related respiratory depression and lethality at higher doses; mitragynine showed no significant respiratory depressant effects even at exposures well above the typical human dose range. Cited as evidence for the distinct safety profile of partial μ-opioid agonism relative to full-agonist opioids.
Methods for alkaloid quantification and product quality verification.
Sharma A, Kamble SH, León F, et al.
Drug Testing and Analysis, 2019, 11(8):1162–1171
Sharma et al. developed and validated a UPLC-MS/MS method for parallel quantification of mitragynine, 7-hydroxymitragynine, speciogynine, speciociliatine, and related alkaloids. Reference methodology for product quality-control testing.
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