Ginsenoside Rb3 is a protopanaxadiol ginsenoside that can be isolated from several different Panax species. Ginsenoside Rb3 exerts antidepressant and antidiabetic activities as well as cardio- and neroprotective action in ischemic tissue injury in animal models. Ginsenoside Rb3 inhibits apoptosis and cell proliferation, in addition it demonstrates antiaxidant properties. Ginsenoside Rb3 may modulate activity of GABA-A and NMDA receptors.

Ibotenic acid is an isoxazole originally isolated from Amanita mushrooms. The toxic fungi Amanita muscaria, commonly known as the fly agaric, was used to prepare the soma. The feelings of euphoria or invincibility experienced by those who drank it were eventually attributed to a group of isoxazoles centuries later. Two of these - ibotenic acid and muscimol - were first isolated from the Japanese mushroom Amanita ibotengutake in the 1960s, but found in abundance in all Amanita mushrooms. Ibotenic acid is a non-protein amino acid that is unstable and easily decarboxylated to muscimol. Ibotenic acid is a glutamate agonist, acting at glutamate receptors. Ibotenic acid is neurotoxic and used to induce cerebral lesioning in animal models.

N-Methyl-DL-Aspartic Acid (NMDLA) represents a racemic mixture of D and L enantiomers (NMDA; NMLA). Each enantiomer has different biological activities and different natural tissue/species abundances. Therefore, each enantiomer should be considered separately. NMDA is a widely studied neurotoxin which is an agonist of the NMDA receptor and induces brain legions. NMDA is not normally found in tissues, while NMLA can be found naturally in some bivalves.