Harmane

Harmane (harman) is a heterocyclic amine found in a variety of foods including coffee, sauces, and cooked meat. It is also present in tobacco smoke.

Harmane is related to other alkaloids, harmine and harmaline, found in 1837 in the plant Peganum harmala. The name derives from the Arabic word for the plant, حَرْمَل (ḥarmal).

In humans, harmane is a potent tremor-producing neurotoxin. Harmane has been found to inhibit the early stages of the growth of the malaria parasite in the gut of mosquitoes infected by the bacterium Delftia tsuruhatensis, and can be absorbed by the mosquitoes upon contact.

Chemistry
Harmane is a methylated derivative of β-carboline with the molecular formula C12H10N2.