Studies on the metabolism and toxicological detection of the designer drug 4-ethyl-2,5-dimethoxy-beta-phenethylamine (2C-E) in rat urine using gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric techniques.
Denis S Theobald, Hans H Maurer
Journal of chromatography. B, Analytical technologies in the biomedical and life sciences October 2, 2006 DOI: 10.1016/j.jchromb.2006.03.001 via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractThe designer drug 2C-E is metabolized in rats through several pathways: O-demethylation, N-acetylation, hydroxylation of the ethyl side chain, oxidation to ketones or acids, and deamination followed by reduction to alcohols. Most metabolites are excreted in conjugated form. A systematic toxicological analysis using full-scan GC-MS detected intake of a dose corresponding to a common drug users' dose in rat urine. Assuming similar metabolism in humans, the procedure should be suitable for proving 2C-E intake in human urine.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Preclinical animal study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Rats |
| Intervention | 2C-E |
| Keywords | Drug metabolism Biotransformation Drug processing Metabolic changes Breakdown products |
| Citations | 42 |
| Key finding | 2C-E is metabolized in rats via O-demethylation, N-acetylation, side-chain hydroxylation, and deamination, with most metabolites excreted in conjugated form, and the described GC-MS procedure can detect an intake corresponding to a common drug users' dose. |
Abstract
The phenethylamine-derived designer drug 4-ethyl-2,5-dimethoxy-beta-phenethylamine (2C-E) was found to be mainly metabolized in rats by O-demethylation, N-acetylation, hydroxylation of the ethyl side chain at C2' or at C1' followed by oxidation at C1' to the corresponding ketone, by deamination followed by reduction to the corresponding alcohols or by oxidation to the corresponding acids, and finally combinations of these steps. Most of the metabolites were excreted in conjugated form. The authors' systematic toxicological analysis (STA) procedure using full-scan GC-MS allowed the detection of an intake of a dose of 2C-E in rat urine that corresponds to a common drug users' dose. Assuming similar metabolism, the described STA procedure should be suitable for proof of an intake of 2C-E in human urine.