(–)-2-β-Carbomethoxy-3-β-(4-fluorophenyl)tropane (β-CFT, WIN 35,428) is a stimulant drug used in scientific research. CFT is a

phenyltropane Phenyltropanes (PTs) were originally developed to reduce cocaine addiction and dependency. In general these compounds act as inhibitors of the plasmalemmal monoamine reuptake transporters. Although RTI holds a strong position in this field, ...

based

dopamine reuptake inhibitor A dopamine reuptake inhibitor (DRI) is a class of drug which acts as a reuptake inhibitor of the monoamine neurotransmitter dopamine by blocking the action of the dopamine transporter (DAT). Reuptake inhibition is achieved when extracellular dop ...

and is structurally derived from

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Ameri ...

. It is around 3-10x more potent than cocaine and lasts around 7 times longer based on animal studies. While the naphthalenedisulfonate salt is the most commonly used form in scientific research due to its high

solubility In chemistry, solubility is the ability of a substance, the solute, to form a solution with another substance, the solvent. Insolubility is the opposite property, the inability of the solute to form such a solution. The extent of the solub ...

in water, the free base and

hydrochloride In chemistry, a hydrochloride is an acid salt resulting, or regarded as resulting, from the reaction of hydrochloric acid with an organic base (e.g. an amine). An alternative name is chlorhydrate, which comes from French. An archaic alternative n ...

salts are known compounds and can also be produced. The tartrate is another salt form that is reported.

Uses

CFT was first reported by Clarke and co-workers in 1973. This drug is known to function as a "positive reinforcer" (although it is less likely to be self-administered by rhesus monkeys than cocaine). Tritiated CFT is frequently used to map binding of novel ligands to the DAT, although the drug also has some SERT affinity.

Radiolabelled Isotopic labeling (or isotopic labelling) is a technique used to track the passage of an isotope (an atom with a detectable variation in neutron count) through a reaction, metabolic pathway, or cell. The reactant is 'labeled' by replacing specific ...

forms of CFT have been used in humans and animals to map the distribution of dopamine transporters in the

brain A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a ve ...

. CFT was found to be particularly useful for this application as a normal fluorine atom can be substituted with the radioactive isotope ¹⁸F which is widely used in Positron emission tomography. Another radioisotope-substituted

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 ...

1CIN 35,428 (where the carbon atom of either the N-methyl group, or the methyl from the 2-carbomethoxy group of CFT, has been replaced with ¹¹C) is now more commonly used for this application, as it is quicker and easier in practice to make radiolabelled CFT by methylating nor-CFT or 2-desmethyl-CFT than by reacting

methylecgonidine Methylecgonidine (anhydromethylecgonine; anhydroecgonine methyl ester; AEME) is a chemical intermediate derived from ecgonine or cocaine. Methylecgonidine is a pyrolysis product formed when crack cocaine is smoked, making this substance a useful ...

with parafluorophenylmagnesium bromide, and also avoids the requirement for a licence to work with the restricted precursor

ecgonine Ecgonine (tropane derivative) is a tropane alkaloid found naturally in coca leaves. It has a close structural relation to cocaine: it is both a metabolite and a precursor, and as such, it is a controlled substance in many jurisdictions, as are s ...

. CFT is about as addictive as cocaine in animal studies, but is taken less often due to its longer duration of action. Potentially this could make it a suitable drug to be used as a substitute for

, in a similar manner to how

methadone Methadone, sold under the brand names Dolophine and Methadose among others, is a synthetic opioid agonist used for chronic pain and also for opioid dependence. It is used to treat chronic pain, and it is also used to treat addiction to heroi ...

is used as a substitute for opiates in treating addiction.

Street drug

In August 2010, some media sources claimed that the

designer drug A designer drug is a structural or functional analog of a controlled substance that has been designed to mimic the pharmacological effects of the original drug, while avoiding classification as illegal and/or detection in standard drug tests. D ...

Ivory Wave contained WIN 35,428. However, samples of Ivory Wave have been found to contain

MDPV Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) is a stimulant of the cathinone class that acts as a norepinephrine–dopamine reuptake inhibitor (NDRI). It was first developed in the 1960s by a team at Boehringer Ingelheim. Its activity at the dopamine tra ...

, so the legitimacy of these claims remains unclear.

Legal status

CFT is not specifically scheduled in the United States, though it is considered by chemical supply companies and perhaps law enforcement to be covered under 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 Schedule I or II to be treated as if it were listed in ...

as a Schedule II due to its close similarity in structure and function to the schedule II drug

Toxicity

Administering 100 mg/kg of CFT to rats only resulted in convulsions being reported, whereas CIT had the ability to cause death at this dose.

Uses

Street drug

Legal status

Toxicity

See also

References

Further reading