A comparison of the catecholamine releasing effect of the khat alkaloids (-)-cathinone and (+)-norpseudoephedrine.

Consumption of khat leaves produces symptoms that are similar to those caused by amphetamine. The experiments reported in the following describe the effect of the two khat alkaloids (-)-cathinone and (+)-norpseudoephedrine at the cellular level. Both were shown to induce release from physiological catecholamine storage sites. Peripheral noradrenaline sites (rabbit heart) were observed to be more sensitive than CNS dopamine sites (rat nucleus accumbens). In the latter organ, which is believed to be involved in amphetamine hypermotility, (-)-cathinone was considerably more potent than (+)-norpseudoephedrine.