Ephenidine (also known as NEDPA and EPE) is a

dissociative Dissociatives, colloquially dissos, are a subclass of hallucinogens which distort perception of sight and sound and produce feelings of detachment – dissociation – from the environment and/or self. Although many kinds of drugs are capable of ...

anesthetic An anesthetic (American English) or anaesthetic (British English; see spelling differences) is a drug used to induce anesthesia ⁠— ⁠in other words, to result in a temporary loss of sensation or awareness. They may be divided into tw ...

that has been sold online as a

designer drug A designer drug is a structural or functional analog of a controlled substance that has been designed to mimic the pharmacological effects of the original drug, while avoiding classification as illegal and/or detection in standard drug tests. Des ...

. It is illegal in some countries as a

structural isomer In chemistry, a structural isomer (or constitutional isomer in the IUPAC nomenclature) of a compound is another compound whose molecule has the same number of atoms of each element, but with logically distinct bonds between them. The term met ...

of the banned opioid drug

lefetamine Lefetamine (Santenol) is a drug which is a stimulant and also an analgesic with effects comparable to codeine. Discovery Lefetamine-related 1,2-diphenylethylamines were invented in the 1940s and showed weak analgesic activity. It was investi ...

, but has been sold in countries where it is not yet banned.

Pharmacology

Pharmacodynamics

Ephenidine and related diarylethylamines have been studied in vitro as treatments for neurotoxic injuries, and are antagonists of the

NMDA receptor The ''N''-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (also known as the NMDA receptor or NMDAR), is a glutamate receptor and ion channel found in neurons. The NMDA receptor is one of three types of ionotropic glutamate receptors, the other two being AMPA rece ...

(K_i = 66.4 nM for ephenidine). Ephenidine also possesses weaker affinity for

dopamine Dopamine (DA, a contraction of 3,4-dihydroxyphenethylamine) is a neuromodulatory molecule that plays several important roles in cells. It is an organic chemical of the catecholamine and phenethylamine families. Dopamine constitutes about 8 ...

and

norepinephrine transporter The norepinephrine transporter (NET), also known as noradrenaline transporter (NAT), is a protein that in humans is encoded by the solute carrier family 6 member 2 (SLC6A2) gene. NET is a monoamine transporter and is responsible for the sodium- ...

s (379 nM and 841 nM, respectively) as well as σ₁R (629 nM) and σ₂R (722 nM) binding sites.

Pharmacokinetics

Metabolism

Ephenidine's

metabolic pathway In biochemistry, a metabolic pathway is a linked series of chemical reactions occurring within a cell. The reactants, products, and intermediates of an enzymatic reaction are known as metabolites, which are modified by a sequence of chemical ...

consists of N-oxidation, N-dealkylation, mono- and bis-hydroxylation of the benzene ring, and hydroxylation of the phenyl ring only after N-dealkylation. The dihydroxy metabolites were conjugated by methylation of one hydroxy group, and hydroxy metabolites by glucuronidation or sulfation.

Chemistry

Ephenidine reacts with

reagent testing Reagent testing is one of the processes used to identify substances contained within a pill, usually illicit substances. With the increased prevalence of drugs being available in their pure forms, the terms "drug checking" or "pill testing" may a ...

kits to give a semi-unique array of colors which can be used to aid its identification.

Society and culture

Sweden's public health agency suggested that ephenidine be classified as a hazardous substance on 1 June, 2015. Due to that suggestion, ephenidine became a scheduled substance, in Sweden, as of 18 August, 2015. In Canada, MT-45 and its analogues were made Schedule I controlled substances. Possession without legal authority can result in maximum 7 years imprisonment. Further, Health Canada amended the ''Food and Drug Regulations'' in May, 2016, to classify AH-7921 as a restricted drug. Only those with a law enforcement agency, a person with an exemption permit, or institutions with Minister's authorization may possess the drug.

References

{{Sigma receptor modulators Designer drugs Diarylethylamines Dissociative drugs Norepinephrine–dopamine reuptake inhibitors NMDA receptor antagonists Sigma receptor ligands