The pharmacology for ethcathinone appeared alongside other psychostimulants in a paper by Rothman and Baumann in 2006.[6] The predominant two modes of action for ethcathinone is as a moderately active releaser of noradrenaline (EC50 = 99.3 nM);[6] however it is only a relatively weak inhibitor of dopamine reuptake (Ki = 1,014 nM).[6]
Since diethylcathinone appears to be an inactive prodrug and only becomes active after it has been further metabolized to ethcathinone,[6] it thereby would appear rational to consider that ethcathinone would also be expected to be N-dealkylated upon its consumption to the more active drug cathinone that is more able to reliably stimulate the release of dopamine. However, in contrast to diethylcathinone, ethcathinone is not universally considered to be a prodrug since (as is the case with tramadol, codeine, and MDMA) it is already active in its own right, therefore being excluded from the category by some of the more strict definitions.
^Camilleri A, Johnston MR, Brennan M, Davis S, Caldicott DG (April 2010). "Chemical analysis of four capsules containing the controlled substance analogues 4-methylmethcathinone, 2-fluoromethamphetamine, alpha-phthalimidopropiophenone and N-ethylcathinone". Forensic Science International. 197 (1–3): 59–66. doi:10.1016/j.forsciint.2009.12.048. PMID20074881.
^"关于印发《非药用类麻醉药品和精神药品列管办法》的通知" (in Chinese). China Food and Drug Administration. 27 September 2015. Archived from the original on 1 October 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
