Myosmine is easily nitrosated, yielding 4-hydroxy-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (HPB) and the esophageal tobacco carcinogen N'-nitrosonornicotine.
Myosmine (0.001, 0.005, 0.5, and 50 micromol/kg; oral; in Wistar rats) causes a higher percentage of the radioactivity excreted in urine (86.2% and 88.9%) at the two lower doses (0.001 and 0.005 micromol/kg),as compared with the higher doses (0.5 and 50 micromol/kg), where only 77.8% and 75.4% of the dose is found in urine.