Several different arachidonoyl amino acids, including N-arachidonoyl-3-hydroxy-γ-aminobutyric acid (NAG-3H-ABA), have been isolated and characterized from bovine brain. The glycine congener was further characterized and found to suppress formalin-induced pain in rats. NAG-3H-ABA was also found in rat brain by LC-MS techniques, but has not been fully characterized to date. Most arachidonoyl amino acids are poor ligands for the CB1 receptor.
N-Nitroso-N-methyl-4-aminobutyric acid (NMBA) is a tobacco-specific nitrosamine carcinogen.1It is oxidized to the reactive metabolite methyl-2-oxopropylnitrosamine (MOPN) in isolated rat liver mitochondria.2NMBA induces bladder transitional cell carcinomas in rats when administered in the drinking water at a concentration of 300 mg L per day.3