Propylketobemidone

Propylketobemidone

Propylketobemidone is a synthetic opioid that is chemically related to ketobemidone. It was developed in the 1950s during research into analogues of pethidine and was assessed by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime but was not included on the list of drugs under international control, probably because it was not used in medicine or veterinary medicine.

Chemistry

Propylketobemidone is a ketone and is related to other drugs such as ketobemidone and pethidine. It is more potent than pethidine and has similar effects to other opioids. Propylketobemidone has a methyl group at the 3 position on the piperidine ring, which is the same place where the methyl group is located in ketobemidone.

Pharmacology

As an opioid, propylketobemidone acts on the mu-opioid receptor in the brain and spinal cord, which are the main sites of action for the most commonly used opioids. Activation of the mu-opioid receptor is responsible for the analgesic effects of opioids. Like other opioids, propylketobemidone can cause respiratory depression, constipation, and dependence.

Legal status

Propylketobemidone is not currently under international control. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has assessed propylketobemidone but did not include it on the list of substances under international control, probably because it is not used in medicine or veterinary medicine.

See also

• Ketobemidone
• Pethidine
• Opioid