Informational only. Not medical advice.INFORMATIONAL PLATFORM ONLY — NOT MEDICAL ADVICE, DIAGNOSIS, OR TREATMENT
Head-to-head comparison of Aniracetam and Phenylpiracetam hydrazide — mechanism, side effects, legal status, and pricing.
Aniracetam is a non-peptide pyrrolidinone derivative and positive allosteric modulator of AMPA-type glutamate receptors. It is marketed as a prescription drug for cognitive disorders in some European countries (Italy, Greece) but has never been approved by the US FDA as either a drug or dietary supplement ingredient. The compound was reportedly withdrawn from the Japanese market following a failed confirmatory trial. Despite lacking US regulatory approval, aniracetam is openly sold online by nootropic-supplement retailers, often with significant label-accuracy problems.
Phenylpiracetam hydrazide is a non-peptide racetam-class small molecule — specifically a pyrrolidinone acetohydrazide in which the terminal carboxamide of phenylpiracetam (fonturacetam) is replaced by a carbohydrazide group. First synthesized in 1980 by a Russian medicinal-chemistry group screening 4-phenyl-2-pyrrolidinone derivatives for anticonvulsant activity, it has never been approved as a drug in any jurisdiction and has no human clinical trial data. The parent compound phenylpiracetam is explicitly listed on the WADA Prohibited List under S6.A (Non-Specified Stimulants); the hydrazide analog's own it is not on the WADA Prohibited List (only beta-2 agonists are prohibited, Category S3). It is sold by gray-market research-chemical vendors labeled 'not for human consumption.'
Aniracetam
Phenylpiracetam hydrazide
Category
Legal Status
Mechanism
Side Effects
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Aniracetam
No pricing data yet.
Check Aniracetam prices →Phenylpiracetam hydrazide
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Check Phenylpiracetam hydrazide prices →COA corpus from Disclosed Labs — independently tested batches only.
Aniracetam
2
COAs
99.5%
Avg purity
2
Labs
Phenylpiracetam hydrazide
2
COAs
99.4%
Avg purity
2
Labs
The principal human efficacy evidence is one 6-month, double-blind, placebo-controlled multicenter trial in 109 elderly patients meeting probable-Alzheimer's criteria, which showed significant improvement in psychobehavioral parameters versus placebo with excellent reported tolerability, though no itemized adverse-event breakdown was available. No long-term (multi-year) human safety data were located, and no interventional trials of aniracetam are currently registered on ClinicalTrials.gov. In rodent models, aniracetam (50 mg/kg/day for 10 postnatal days) reversed prenatal-ethanol-induced avoidance-learning deficits in rat offspring and increased AMPA-receptor-mediated synaptic currents in hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells. However, oral aniracetam (50 mg/kg, 5 days/week for 6 weeks) produced no cognitive or behavioral enhancement in healthy adult C57BL/6J mice across a comprehensive test battery.
Key references
No human clinical trials have been conducted; no ClinicalTrials.gov record or DrugBank entry exists. The sole preclinical finding is from the 1980 Glozman et al. synthesis paper: an ED<sub>50</sub> of approximately 310 mg/kg for seizure protection in a rodent electroshock assay (species, strain, sex, and route not fully recoverable from accessed sources). No published human toxicology, LD<sub>50</sub>, pharmacokinetics, or adverse-event data were located for this compound.
Aniracetam and Phenylpiracetam hydrazide are both in the Cognitive category and may have overlapping mechanisms. Researchers should review both profiles carefully, understand the mechanisms of action, and monitor the relevant biomarkers when combining compounds in the same class. As always, consult a licensed healthcare provider before making any decisions about combining research compounds.
This platform provides informational tools only, not medical advice. This comparison is for educational purposes only. Consult a licensed provider.
Contraindications
Lab Testing