From molecule to evidence
What compounds really do.
Synaptik is a reference database for compounds. Each profile gives the target, mechanism of action and absorption, backed by primary sources, and shows whether the compound has been studied in humans and what those studies found.
- 350 compound profiles
- 5275 citations
- No doses, no shops
dopamine noradrenaline serotonin cAMP drug cross = transporter blocked
Baseline
dopamine in the cleft (model): baseline
Modafinil
dopamine in the cleft (model): more
The baseline panel runs without a drug, the other with the selected drug; both run with the same release. The word and bar under the panels show, without a number, only the direction: according to the evidence, and for phenylpiracetam (racemate) inferred from DAT inhibition because the profile's sources did not measure dopamine for it. The particle model is illustrative, not a measurement, and says nothing about the size of the effect in humans.
Approach
Free to read, backed by sources and explained from molecule to evidence.
How to read a profile.
The three examples are taken unchanged from the modafinil profile, which is in German.
Target
What the compound binds to and what it does there, with the measured value, level of evidence and source.
View in the profileTargets
Dopamintransporter (DAT)
Transporter · Hemmer
IC50 6,4 µM (menschlicher DAT, Zellkultur); IC50 4,0 µM (Rattensynaptosomen); rund 54 % Besetzung im Nucleus caudatus (Mensch, PET)
Noradrenalintransporter (NET)
Transporter · Hemmer
IC50 35,6 µM (menschlicher NET, Zellkultur); Besetzung im Thalamus (Rhesusaffe, PET)
Animal study[1]
Absorption
How much of it reaches the blood, how long it stays there and whether it reaches the brain.
View in the profileEvidence
What human studies show for the main claim, who took part and how certain the result is.
View in the profileMain claim
Bessere geistige Leistung bei Gesunden
- Studied in
- gesund
- Level of evidence
- Human, randomised
- Result
- Small benefit
Zwei Metaanalysen placebokontrollierter Studien zeigen bei ausgeschlafenen Gesunden nur kleine Effekte (g = 0,10 bzw. SMD 0,12) [11][12]. Die Studien prüfen fast nur Einzelgaben unter Laborbedingungen; Nutzen und Sicherheit bei wiederholter Anwendung durch Gesunde sind nicht untersucht.
What studies in healthy people show for 38 nootropics
Each profile shows where a compound acts, how much of it arrives, which studies exist and what they found, including modafinil, piracetam, tongkat ali and BPC-157. All figures in this summary are calculated from the profiles; every figure for a compound group or result links to the library with that filter (in German).
Nootropics: result in healthy people
Nootropics = profiles in the compound group “nootropic”.
Level of evidence for the main claim, all profiles
- 4 · Human, randomised190
- 3 · Human, non-randomised15
- 2 · Animal study31
- 1 · Laboratory3
- 0 · No data111
Profiles by compound group
citations in the library
What happens in a synapse and where compounds intervene
Dopamine is released, binds, is taken back up and broken down. Tap the transporter, enzyme or receptors to see which compounds act there and how well this is supported.
How compounds get into the brain at allHow strong is the evidence?
An effect in cell culture is not the same as an effect in healthy people. That is why every finding on Synaptik carries its level of evidence.
- 5
Systematic reviews & meta-analyses
Can show: the overall picture across many studies and a more precise effect estimate. Cannot: make up for weaknesses in the studies it includes.
- 4
Randomized controlled trials (RCTs)
Can show: cause and effect, because chance assigns the groups. Cannot: always cover long periods or hard endpoints; results apply first to the population studied.
- 3
Cohort and open-label studies
Can show: associations and first signals in humans. Cannot: prove causation; confounding, expectation effects and selection remain possible.
3 · case reports only: Level 3, but from individual case reports only: observations in single people without a comparison group. They show that something can happen, not how often or whether the compound caused it.
- 2
Animal studies
Can show: mechanisms in a living organism. Cannot: tell whether humans experience the same effect, how strongly and with which risks.
- 1
Laboratory: cell culture & test tube
Can show: molecular targets and biological plausibility. Cannot: tell us directly what happens in the body.
Why Synaptik exists
Synaptik is an independent project by Tilman Finley Winter, a nutritional scientist with a focus on biochemistry. Many compounds come with promises that are rarely measured against the evidence. Synaptik explains where and how they act in the body and how well that is supported.
Tilman studied nutritional science at the University of Hohenheim, focusing on nutritional physiology, biochemistry, immunology and food law. For his bachelor's thesis within the clinical human study CAPE he analysed RNA-seq data on postprandial changes in the monocyte transcriptome. From industry he brings quality assurance under HACCP and IFS Food and experience in checking health claims against the EU Health Claims Regulation.
Our principles
- 01Every effect is traced back to its target: receptor, transporter, enzyme or signaling pathway.
- 02Next to each level of evidence is what the studies actually found, null results included.
- 03No buying advice, no shops: ratings follow the evidence alone. We give no doses or dosing advice, and we name risks with evidence.
- 04Research and drafts are produced with AI assistance. Every source with a DOI or PMID is resolved automatically via Crossref and PubMed, and the main claims are also checked by hand.