Methylenedioxymethamphetamine-like discriminative stimulus effects of seven cathinones in rats
Behavioural Pharmacology June 1, 2020 Michael B. Gatch, Sean B. Dolan, Michael J. Forster 6 citations
Most synthetic cathinones tested produce effects similar to the club drug MDMA in rats, but not all. In rats trained to distinguish MDMA from a placebo, six of seven cathinones—4-fluoromethcathinone, 4-methylmethcathinone, 4-methylethcathinone, 3-fluoromethcathinone, pentedrone, and ethylone—fully substituted for MDMA's discriminative stimulus effects. Methcathinone produced at most 43% MDMA-like responding, and higher doses suppressed responding. The potency of MDMA-like versus psychostimulant-like effects varied substantially among compounds, indicating that some synthetic cathinones are more MDMA-like than psychostimulant-like. This variability suggests that cathinones with MDMA-like effects may be more likely used as club drugs.