Behavioural, Pharmacokinetic, Metabolic, and Hyperthermic Profile of 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) in the Wistar Rat
Frontiers in Psychiatry April 24, 2018 Rachel R. Horsley, Eva Lhotková, Kateřina Hájková et al. 20 citations
MDPV, a potent synthetic cathinone, is rapidly absorbed after subcutaneous injection in male Wistar rats, reaching peak concentrations in serum, brain, and lungs within 30 minutes. It readily crosses the blood-brain barrier, with a brain-to-serum ratio of about 2 lasting for roughly 120 minutes. The drug is primarily excreted as metabolites, with demethylenyl-MDPV and demethylenyl-methyl-MDPV levels three to four times higher than the parent drug in urine. MDPV acts as a typical stimulant, producing locomotor activation, disrupted spatial behavior, moderate hyperthermia (exacerbated in group-housed animals), and transient disruption of prepulse inhibition at 4 mg/kg, consistent with a dopaminergic mechanism. No specific signs of acute toxicity were observed at the doses used.