42542-10-9

In the last years the identification of new legal and illegal highs has become a huge challenge for the police and prosecution authorities. In an analytical context, only a few analytical methods are available to identify these new substances. Moreover, many of these recreational drugs are chiral and it is supposed that the enantiomers differ in their pharmacological potency. Since nonenantioselective synthesis is easier and cheaper, they are mainly sold as racemic mixtures. The goal of this research work was to develop an inexpensive method for the chiral separation of cathinones and amphetamines. This should help to discover if the substances are sold as racemic mixtures and give further information about their quality as well as their origin. Chiral separation of a set of 6 amphetamine and 25 cathinone derivatives, mainly purchased from various Internet shops, is presented. A LiChrospher 100 RP-18e, 250 x 4 mm, 5 μm served as the stationary phase. The chiral mobile phase consisted of methanol, water, and sulfated β-cyclodextrin. Measurements were performed under isocratic conditions in reversed phase mode using UV detection. Four model compounds of the two substance classes were used to optimize the mobile phase. Under final conditions (methanol:water 2.5:97.5 + 2% sulfated β-cyclodextrin) enantiomers of amphetamine and five derivatives were baseline separated within 23 min. In all, 17 cathinones were completely or partially chirally separated. However, as only 3 of 25 cathinones were baseline resolved, the application of this method is limited for cathinone analogs. Additionally, the results were compared with an RP-8e column. Copyright

The α4β2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) is a molecular target of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), a synthetic drug also known as ecstasy, and it modulates the MDMA-mediated reinforcing properties. However, the enantioselective preference of the α4β2 nAChR subtype still remains unknown. Since the two enantiomers exhibit different pharmacological profiles and stereoselective metabolism, the aim of this study is to assess a possible difference in the interaction of the MDMA enantiomers with this nAChR subtype. To this end, we report a novel simple, yet highly efficient enantioselective synthesis of the MDMA enantiomers, in which the key step is the diastereoselective reduction of imides derived from optically pure tert-butylsulfinamide. The enantioselective binding to the receptor is examined using [3H]epibatidine in a radioligand assay. Even though the two enantiomers induced a concentration-dependent binding displacement, (S)-MDMA has an inhibition constant 13-fold higher than (R)-MDMA, which shows a Hill's coefficient not significantly different from unity, implying a competitive interaction. Furthermore, when NGF-differentiated PC12 cells were pretreated with the compounds, a significant increase in binding of [3H] epibatidine was found for (R)-MDMA, indicating up-regulation of heteromeric nAChR in the cell surface. Finally, docking and molecular dynamics studies have been used to identify the binding mode of the two enantiomers, which provides a structural basis to justify the differences in affinity from the differential interactions played by the substituents at the stereogenic centre of MDMA. The results provide a basis to explore the distinct psychostimulant profiles of the MDMA enantiomers mediated by the α4β2 nAChR subtype.

2-Arylethylamine derivatives were synthesized using the Curtius reaction and with three different methods of preparing the acyl azide functional group. Carbamates derived from isocyanate were convenient protecting groups for alkylation of amines. Starting from benzaldehyde, amphetamine was prepared in three steps through an oxazolidin-2-one intermediate in 62% overall yield. Copyright Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Drug profiling, or the ability to link batches of illicit drugs to a common source or synthetic route, has long been a goal of law enforcement agencies. Research in the past decade has explored drug profiling with isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS). This type of research can be limited by the use of substances seized by police, of which the provenance is unknown. Fortunately, however, some studies in recent years have been carried out on drugs synthesized in-house and therefore of known history. In this study, 18 MDMA samples were synthesized in-house from aliquots of the same precursor by three common reductive animation routes and analyzed for 13C, 15N, and 2H isotope abundance using IRMS. For these three preparative methods, results indicate that 2H isotope abundance data is necessary for discrimination by synthetic route. Furthermore, hierarchical cluster analysis using 2H data on its own or combined with 13C and/or 15N provides a statistical means for accurate discrimination by synthetic route.

Ecstasy samples often contain byproducts of the illegal, uncontrolled synthesis of N-methyl-3,4-methylenedioxy-amphetamine or 3,4-methylenedioxy- methamphetamine (MDMA). MDMA and eight chemically defined byproducts of MDMA synthesis were investigated for their interaction with the primary sites of action of MDMA, namely the human plasmalemmal monamine transporters for norepinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine [(norepinephrine transporter (NET), serotonin transporter (SERT), and dopamine transporter (DAT)]. SKN-MC neuroblastoma and human embryonic kidney cells stably transfected with the transporter cDNA were used for uptake and release experiments. Two of the eight compounds, 1,3-bis (3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-propanamine (12) and N-formyl-1,3-bis (3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl)-prop-2-yl-amine (13) had uptake inhibitory potencies with IC50 values in the low micromolar range similar to MDMA. Compounds with nitro instead of amino groups and a phenylethenyl instead of a phenylethyl structure or a formamide or acetamide modification had IC50 values beyond 100 μM. MDMA, 12, and 13 were examined for induction of carrier-mediated release by superfusion of transporter expressing cells preloaded with the metabolically inert transporter substrate [3H]1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium. MDMA induced release mediated by NET, SERT, or DAT with EC50 values of 0.64, 1.12, and 3.24 μM, respectively. 12 weakly released from NET- and SERT-expressing cells with maximum effects less than one-tenth of that of MDMA and did not release from DAT cells. 13 had no releasing activity. 12 and 13 inhibited release induced by MDMA, and the concentration dependence of this effect correlated with their uptake inhibitory potency at the various transporters. These results do not support a neurotoxic potential of the examined ecstasy synthesis byproducts and provide interesting structure-activity relationships on the transporters. Copyright

The invention provides a hapten, an immunogen comprising the hapten coupled to an antigenicity-conferring carrier material, a conjugate comprising the hapten coupled to a labelling agent, as well as, antibodies raised against the aforementioned immunogen and capable of binding with MDMA.

The α-ethyl phenethylamine derivative 1-(1,3-benzodioxol-5-yl)-2-butanamine was prepared. An asymmetric synthesis was used to prepare the enantiomers of this compound and the related α-methyl homologue (MDA). The racemates and enantiomers of both compounds were evaluated in the two-lever drug discrimination assay in rats trained to discriminate saline from 0.08 mg/kg of LSD tartrate. Stimulus generalization occurred with the racemate and the R-(-)enantiomer of the α-methyl homologue and the S-(+)enantiomer of the α-ethyl primary amine. No generalization occurred with the other enantiomers or with the N-methyl derivatives of either series. Human psychopharmacology studies revealed that the N-methyl derivative of the title compound was nonhallucinogenic and that it had a new, novel psychoactive effect. It is suggested that this compound is the prototype of a new pharmacologic class that may have value in facilitating psychotherapy and that this class be designated as entactogens.

N-substituted analogs of 3,4-methylenedioxyphenylisopropylamine (MDA) were tested ror analgesic potency and influence on motor activity in mice following potency and influence on motor activity in mice following oral administration. These compounds also were tested for thei psychotomimetic potency in man. Unsubstituted MDA and its monoalkyl-homologs with a low number of C-atoms (N-methyl-, N-methyl-, N-ethyl-MDA) showed both enhancement of motor-activity in mice and psychotomimetic effects in man. MDA and N-methyl-MDA also showed an analgesic effec wthich was enhanced by the inclusion of a weakly labis group (N-mallyl, N-hydroxyethyl). These latter two compounds, however, did not influence motor-activity, which makes them more recommendable as possible analgesic compounds. Structural parallels between these compounds, morphine, endorphins and enkephalins, may explain their similar spectrum of pharmacological effects.

The known central nervous system activity of 3,4-methylenedioxyphenylisopropylamine and its N-methyl homolog prompted the synthesis of a series of analogs with substituents on the nitrogen atom. Most of these analogs (R = alkyl, alkenyl, hydroxy, alkoxy, and alkoxyalkyl) were prepared by the reductive alkylation of 3,4-methylenedioxyphenylacetone with the appropriate amine and sodium cyanoborohydride. Hindered isomers were synthesized indirectly. Measurements of their pharmacological activity in several animal assays and in human subjects indicated that the central activity decreased with the increasing bulk of the N-substituent.