Methylone and mCPP, two new drugs of abuse?

[enquirewithin]

Methylone and mCPP, two new drugs of abuse?

Bossong MG, Van Dijk JP, Niesink RJ.

Drugs Information and Monitoring System (DIMS), Trimbos Institute for Mental Health and Addiction, Utrecht, the Netherlands. mbossong@trimbos.nl

Recently, two new ecstasy-like substances, methylone and mCPP, were found in street drugs in the Netherlands by the Drugs Information and Monitoring System (DIMS). Methylone (3,4-methylenedioxymethcathinone) is the main ingredient of a new liquid designer drug that appeared on the Dutch drug market, called 'Explosion'. mCPP (meta-chlorophenylpiperazine) is a substance often used as a probe for the serotonin function in psychiatric research, and has now been found in street drugs, both in tablets and powders. Methylone as well as mCPP act on monoaminergic systems, resembling MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine), with mCPP mainly affecting the serotonin system. The subjective effects of both new substances exhibit subtle differences with those of MDMA. Only little is known about the harmfulness of both methylone and mCPP. However, because of similarities between these substances and MDMA, risks common to MDMA cannot be excluded.

This is not very significant as the methylone part seems to mainly refer to "Explosion" and as for mCPP, I'm not sure how much any one cares.