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Mephedrone (4-methylmethcathinone; ‘meow meow’): chemical, pharmacological and clinical issues

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Abstract

Background

Recently, those substances deriving from the active ingredient of the Khat plant, cathinone, have been rising in popularity. Indeed, 4-methylmethcathinone (mephedrone; ‘meow meow’ and others) has been seen by some as a cheaper alternative to other classified recreational drugs.

Aims

We aimed here at providing a state-of-the-art review on mephedrone history and prevalence of misuse, chemistry, pharmacology, legal status, product market appearance, clinical/management and related fatalities.

Methods

Because of the limited evidence, some of the information here presented has been obtained from user reports/drug user-orientated web sites. The most common routes for mephedrone recreational use include insufflation and oral ingestion. It elicits stimulant and empathogenic effects similar to amphetamine, methylamphetamine, cocaine and MDMA. Due to its sympathomimetic actions, mephedrone may be associated with a number of both physical and psychopathological side effects. Recent preliminary analysis of recent UK data carried out in 48 related cases have provided positive results for the presence of mephedrone at postmortem.

Discussion and Conclusions

Within the UK, diffusion of mephedrone may have been associated with an unprecedented combination of a particularly aggressive online marketing policy and a decreasing availability/purity of both ecstasy and cocaine. Mephedrone has been recently classified in both the UK and in a number of other countries as a measure to control its availability. Following this, a few other research psychoactives have recently entered the online market as yet unregulated substances that may substitute for mephedrone. Only international collaborative efforts may be able to tackle the phenomenon of the regular offer of novel psychoactive drugs.

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Funding

The present study was carried out with the support of the European Commission (EC); e.g. for both the Psychonaut Web Mapping System (A/800102; 2006 348) and the ReDNet (EC Executive Agency for Health and Consumers in the framework of the Public Health Programme; 2009 12 26) projects. The views expressed here reflect only the authors’ views and not necessarily those of the relevant EC officers.

Conflict of interest

No conflicts of interest are declared here which may have influenced the interpretation of present data.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Pharmacy, College Lane Campus, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Herftordshire, AL10 9AB, UK

    Fabrizio Schifano, Suzanne Fergus, Jackie L. Stair & Ornella Corazza

  2. Hertfordshire Partnership Foundation Trust, Herftordshire, UK

    Fabrizio Schifano & Antonio Albanese

  3. International Centre for Drug Policy, St George’s University of London, London, UK

    Fabrizio Schifano, John Corkery & A. Hamid Ghodse

  4. Department of Addictions, Institute of Psychiatry London, King’s College London, London, UK

    Paolo Deluca, Ornella Corazza & Zoe Davey

  5. LVR-Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany

    Holger Siemann & Norbert Scherbaum

  6. Consorci Mar Parc de Salut Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Magi’ Farre’ & Marta Torrens

  7. Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary

    Zsolt Demetrovics

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  1. Fabrizio Schifano
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  8. John Corkery
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  14. A. Hamid Ghodse
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Psychonaut Web Mapping

ReDNet Research Groups

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Fabrizio Schifano.

Additional information

The Psychonaut Web Mapping Group Members are: Fabrizio Schifano, Paolo Deluca, Zoe Davey, Ornella Corazza, Lucia Di Furia, Magi’ Farre’, Liv Flesland, Miia Mannonen, Aino Majava, Stefania Pagani, Teuvo Peltoniemi, Manuela Pasinetti, Cinzia Pezzolesi, Norbert Scherbaum, Holger Siemann, Arvid Skutle, Marta Torrens, Peer Van Der Kreeft.

The ReDNet Research Group Members are: Fabrizio Schifano; Ornella Corazza, Zoe Davey, Paolo Deluca; Zsolt Demetrovics; Aurora Enea; Giuditta di Melchiorre; Lucia Di Furia; Magi’ Farre’; Liv Flesland; Norbert Scherbaum, Holger Siemann, Arvid Skutle, Marta Torrens, Manuela Pasinetti, Cinzia Pezzolesi; Harry Shapiro; Elias Sferrazza; Peer van der Kreeft, Colin Drummond, Agnieszka Pisarska, Barbara Mervo, Jacek Moskalewicz, Luciano Floridi, Lill Susann Ynnesdal Haugen.

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Table 1

Control status of mephedrone in selected countries (as at end of September 2010) (DOC 102 kb)

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Schifano, F., Albanese, A., Fergus, S. et al. Mephedrone (4-methylmethcathinone; ‘meow meow’): chemical, pharmacological and clinical issues. Psychopharmacology 214, 593–602 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-010-2070-x

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