6-Br-APB is a synthetic compound that acts as a selective D₁

agonist An agonist is a chemical that activates a receptor to produce a biological response. Receptors are cellular proteins whose activation causes the cell to modify what it is currently doing. In contrast, an antagonist blocks the action of the ag ...

, with the (''R'')-

enantiomer In chemistry, an enantiomer ( /ɪˈnænti.əmər, ɛ-, -oʊ-/ ''ih-NAN-tee-ə-mər''; from Ancient Greek ἐνάντιος ''(enántios)'' 'opposite', and μέρος ''(méros)'' 'part') – also called optical isomer, antipode, or optical anti ...

being a potent

full agonist An agonist is a chemical that activates a receptor to produce a biological response. Receptors are cellular proteins whose activation causes the cell to modify what it is currently doing. In contrast, an antagonist blocks the action of the a ...

, while the (''S'') enantiomer retains its D₁ selectivity but is a weak

partial agonist In pharmacology, partial agonists are drugs that bind to and activate a given receptor, but have only partial efficacy at the receptor relative to a full agonist. They may also be considered ligands which display both agonistic and antagonis ...

. (''R'')-6-Br-APB and similar D₁-selective full agonists like

SKF-81,297 SKF-81,297 is a synthetic drug of the benzazepine chemical class that acts as a selective dopamine D1/ D5 receptor full agonist, and produces a characteristic stimulant-like pattern of anorexia, hyperactivity and self-administration in animal ...

and SKF-82,958 produce characteristic

anorectic An anorectic or anorexic is a drug which reduces appetite, resulting in lower food consumption, leading to weight loss. By contrast, an appetite stimulant is referred to as orexigenic. The term is (from the Greek ''ἀν-'' (an-) = "without" a ...

effects, stereotyped behaviour and self-administration in animals, with a similar but not identical profile to that of dopaminergic

stimulant Stimulants (also often referred to as psychostimulants or colloquially as uppers) is an overarching term that covers many drugs including those that increase activity of the central nervous system and the body, drugs that are pleasurable and inv ...

s such as

amphetamine Amphetamine (contracted from alpha- methylphenethylamine) is a strong central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is used in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), narcolepsy, and obesity. It is also commonly used ...

References

1-Phenyl-2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-1H-3-benzazepines Dopamine agonists Bromoarenes Allylamines Benzazepanes {{gastrointestinal-drug-stub