α-Methylacetylfentanyl (or alphamethylacetylfentanyl) is an

opioid Opioids are substances that act on opioid receptors to produce morphine-like effects. Medically they are primarily used for pain relief, including anesthesia. Other medical uses include suppression of diarrhea, replacement therapy for opioid us ...

analgesic An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It ...

that is an

analog Analog or analogue may refer to: Computing and electronics * Analog signal, in which information is encoded in a continuous variable ** Analog device, an apparatus that operates on analog signals *** Analog electronics, circuits which use analog ...

fentanyl Fentanyl, also spelled fentanil, is a very potent synthetic opioid used as a pain medication. Together with other drugs, fentanyl is used for anesthesia. It is also used illicitly as a recreational drug, sometimes mixed with heroin, cocaine ...

. It is a Schedule I controlled substance in the United States, with a DEA ACSCN of 9815. α-Methylacetylfentanyl was sold briefly on the black market in the early 1980s, before the introduction of the

Federal Analog Act The Federal Analogue Act, , is a section of the United States Controlled Substances Act passed in 1986 which allows any chemical "substantially similar" to a controlled substance listed in Controlled Substances Act#Schedule I controlled substance ...

which for the first time attempted to control entire families of drugs based on their structural similarity rather than scheduling each drug individually as they appeared. α-Methylacetylfentanyl is made with the same synthetic route as

α-methylfentanyl α-Methylfentanyl (or ''alpha''-Methylfentanyl) an opioid analgesic that is an analog of fentanyl. It is sometimes sold as "China White". History α-Methylfentanyl was discovered by a team at Janssen Pharmaceutica in the 1960s. In 1976, it be ...

, but by substituting the relatively common

acetic anhydride Acetic anhydride, or ethanoic anhydride, is the chemical compound with the formula (CH3CO)2O. Commonly abbreviated Ac2O, it is the simplest isolable anhydride of a carboxylic acid and is widely used as a reagent in organic synthesis. It is a col ...

for the more difficult to obtain chemical

propionic anhydride Propionic anhydride is an organic compound with the formula (CH3CH2CO)2O. This simple acid anhydride is a colourless liquid. It is a widely used reagent in organic synthesis as well as for producing specialty derivatives of cellulose. Synthesi ...

in the synthesis. α-Methylacetylfentanyl has similar effects to fentanyl. Side effects of

analogs are similar to those of fentanyl itself, which include

itching Itch (also known as pruritus) is a sensation that causes the desire or reflex to scratch. Itch has resisted many attempts to be classified as any one type of sensory experience. Itch has many similarities to pain, and while both are unpleasan ...

nausea Nausea is a diffuse sensation of unease and discomfort, sometimes perceived as an urge to vomit. While not painful, it can be a debilitating symptom if prolonged and has been described as placing discomfort on the chest, abdomen, or back of the ...

and potentially serious

respiratory depression Hypoventilation (also known as respiratory depression) occurs when ventilation is inadequate (''hypo'' meaning "below") to perform needed respiratory gas exchange. By definition it causes an increased concentration of carbon dioxide (hypercapnia ...

, which can be life-threatening. Fentanyl analogs have killed hundreds of people throughout Europe and the former Soviet republics since the most recent resurgence in use began in Estonia in the early 2000s, and novel derivatives continue to appear. The 2013 DEA production quota for acetyl-alpha-methylfentanyl is 2 grammes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Methylacetylfentanyl, alpha- Synthetic opioids Piperidines Acetanilides Mu-opioid receptor agonists