This article may be too technical for most readers to understand.(September 2024) |
This page is a list of modafinil analogues and derivatives, that is, structural analogues and derivatives of the atypical dopamine reuptake inhibitor (DRI) and wakefulness-promoting agent (or "eugeroic") modafinil. [1] [2]
Most of the developed modafinil analogues are selective DRIs with improved potency. [3] [2] [4] They are of interest in the potential treatment of psychostimulant use disorder (PSUD), [3] [2] [5] [6] as pro-motivational agents to treat motivational disorders, [4] [7] and for treatment of certain other conditions, like Alzheimer's disease. [8] Modafinil analogues acting as DRIs include both atypical modafinil-like non-psychostimulant DRIs like flmodafinil and JJC8-016 and classical or typical cocaine-like DRIs like JJC8-088. [3] [5]
Besides their potential medical use, modafinil analogues, including adrafinil, flmodafinil, fladrafinil, and modafiendz, are also sold online as nootropics or "cognitive enhancers". [1] [9] [10] [11]
A limitation of some modafinil analogues, like JJC8-016, is potent inhibition of the hERG antitarget and predicted cardiotoxicity. [6] [2] [12] [13] [14]
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 dopamine not absorbed by the postsynaptic neuron is blocked from re-entering the presynaptic neuron. This results in increased extracellular concentrations of dopamine and increase in dopaminergic neurotransmission.
Adrafinil, sold under the brand name Olmifon, is a wakefulness-promoting medication that was formerly used in France to improve alertness, attention, wakefulness, and mood, particularly in the elderly. It was also used off-label by individuals who wished to avoid fatigue, such as night workers or others who needed to stay awake and alert for long periods of time. Additionally, the medication has been used non-medically as a novel vigilance-promoting agent.
Tetrabenazine is a drug for the symptomatic treatment of hyperkinetic movement disorders. It is sold under the brand names Nitoman and Xenazine among others. On August 15, 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the use of tetrabenazine to treat chorea associated with Huntington's disease. Although other drugs had been used "off label," tetrabenazine was the first approved treatment for Huntington's disease in the U.S. The compound has been known since the 1950s.
Dopaminergic means "related to dopamine", a common neurotransmitter. Dopaminergic substances or actions increase dopamine-related activity in the brain.
Nomifensine, sold under the brand names Merital and Alival, is a norepinephrine–dopamine reuptake inhibitor (NDRI), i.e. a drug that increases the amount of synaptic norepinephrine and dopamine available to receptors by blocking the dopamine and norepinephrine reuptake transporters. This is a mechanism of action shared by some recreational drugs like cocaine and the medication tametraline (see DRI). Research showed that the (S)-isomer is responsible for activity.
Eugeroics, also known as wakefulness-promoting agents and wakefulness-promoting drugs, are a class of drugs that promote wakefulness and alertness. They are medically indicated for the treatment of certain sleep disorders including excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) in narcolepsy or obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Eugeroics are also often prescribed off-label for the treatment of EDS in idiopathic hypersomnia. In contrast to classical psychostimulants, such as methylphenidate and amphetamine, which are also used in the treatment of these disorders, eugeroics typically do not produce marked euphoria, and, consequently, have a lower addictive potential.
Fladrafinil, also known as fluorafinil or as bisfluoroadrafinil, is a wakefulness-promoting agent related to modafinil that was never marketed. It is sold online and used non-medically as a nootropic.
Flmodafinil, also known as bisfluoromodafinil and lauflumide, is a wakefulness-promoting agent related to modafinil which has been developed for treatment of a variety of different medical conditions. These include chronic fatigue syndrome, idiopathic hypersomnia, narcolepsy, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and Alzheimer's disease. Aside its development as a potential pharmaceutical drug, flmodafinil is sold online and used non-medically as a nootropic.
CE-123, or as the active enantiomer (S)-CE-123, is an analog of modafinil, the most researched of a series of structurally related heterocyclic derivatives. In animal studies, CE-123 was found to improve performance on tests of learning and memory in a manner consistent with a nootropic effect profile. (S)-CE-123 has pro-motivational effects in animals, reverses tetrabenazine-induced motivational deficits, and could be useful in the treatment of motivational disorders in humans.
JHW-007 is a cocaine analogue and a high affinity atypical dopamine reuptake inhibitor that is being researched for the treatment of cocaine addiction. JHW-007 has been found to blunt the psychostimulant effects of cocaine and reduce self-administration in rodents. JHW-007 exposure has been shown to block the conditioned place preference effects of cocaine. JHW-007 may directly antagonize the autoregulatory dopamine D2 receptor, a hypothesis that was developed following the observation of JHW-007's ability to inhibit D2 receptor-mediated currents in the midbrain.
PRX-14040 is a selective dopamine reuptake inhibitor that was developed by Prexa Pharmaceuticals. It has 28-fold selectivity for the dopamine transporter over the norepinephrine transporter. Similarly to various other dopamine reuptake inhibitors, the drug has been found to reverse motivational deficits induced by the dopamine depleting agent tetrabenazine in animals.
MRZ-9547, also known as (R)-phenylpiracetam, (R)-phenotropil, or (R)-fonturacetam, is a selective dopamine reuptake inhibitor (IC50Tooltip half-maximal inhibitory concentration = 14.5 μM) that was developed by Merz Pharma. It is the (R)-enantiomer of the racetam and nootropic phenylpiracetam (phenotropil; fonturacetam).
Modafiendz, also known as N-methyl-4,4-difluoromodafinil or as N-methylbisfluoromodafinil, is a wakefulness-promoting agent related to modafinil that was never marketed. It is sold online and used non-medically as a nootropic.
RDS03-94, or RDS3-094, is an atypical dopamine reuptake inhibitor that was derived from the wakefulness-promoting agent modafinil.
JJC8-088 is a dopamine reuptake inhibitor (DRI) that was derived from the wakefulness-promoting agent modafinil.
A pro-motivational agent is a drug which increases motivation. They can be used in the treatment of motivational deficits, for instance in depression, schizophrenia, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), as well as in the treatment of disorders of diminished motivation (DDMs), including apathy, abulia, and akinetic mutism, for instance due to stroke, traumatic brain injury, or neurodegenerative diseases. They are also used non-medically by healthy people to increase motivation and productivity, for instance in educational contexts.
(S)-MK-26 is an atypical dopamine reuptake inhibitor (DRI) that was derived from modafinil. It is closely related to two other modafinil analogues, (S,S)-CE-158 and (S)-CE-123.
CT-005404, or CT-5404, is an atypical dopamine reuptake inhibitor (DRI) that was derived from modafinil. It shows pro-motivational effects in animals and reverses motivational deficits induced by tetrabenazine and interleukin-1β. CT-005404 is described as being orally active in animals and having a long duration of action. It is under development by Chronos Therapeutics for treatment of motivational disorders. The drug was first described by 2018.
CE-158 is an atypical dopamine reuptake inhibitor (DRI) that was derived from modafinil. It is often but not always referred to as the enantiopure enantiomer (S,S)-CE-158 instead.
JJC8-016 is an atypical dopamine reuptake inhibitor (DRI) that was derived from modafinil. It was an early lead in the development of novel modafinil analogues with improved properties for potential use in the treatment of psychostimulant use disorder (PSUD).
[Modafinil] is widely available for online purchase [105] and it is of interest that a range of modafinil derivatives are actively being discussed on web fora, including: adrafinil, fladrafinil, flmodafinil, and N-methyl-4,4′-difluoro-modafinil [8]. Finally, the modafinil R-enantiomer armodafinil, which is being used to improve wakefulness in patients with excessive sleepiness [106], is currently the subject of an anecdotal debate relating to its properties as a [cognitive enhancer] [107].
2-{[bis(4-fluorophenyl)methyl]sulfinyl}-N-methylacetamide is the bis-fluoro-N-methyl analogue of the substance modafinil and is currently marketed by online sellers as a nootropic substance called 'modafiendz'.
2-[(Diphenylmethyl)sulfinyl]acetamide (modafinil) is commonly prescribed for the treatment of narcolepsy and increasing popularity and off-label use as a cognitive enhancer resulted in a reputation as an intelligence boosting 'wonder drug'. Common alternatives available from online shops and other retail outlets include 2-[(diphenylmethyl)sulfinyl]-N-hydroxyacetamide (adrafinil), 2-([bis(4-fluorophenyl)methyl]sulfinyl)acetamide (CRL-40,940), 2-([bis(4-fluorophenyl)methyl]sulfinyl)-N-hydroxyacetamide (CRL-40,941) and N-methyl-4,4-difluoro-modafinil (modafiendz), respectively. [...] CRL-40,941 and modafiendz are also wakefulness promoting agents and related to modafinil and adrafinil (Figure 1).
However, JJC8-016 failed cardiac safety tests by exhibiting relatively high affinity at hERG channels; thus, this analog was abandoned from further development.
From this validation set of DAT inhibitors, we noticed that a pair of analogs with similar chemical structures, JJC8-01646 and JJC8-08813 (Tanimoto similarity = 0.62, Figure S6), have opposite trends of affinities at DAT and hERG. JJC8-088 has ~90-fold higher affinity than JJC8-016 at DAT (Ki = 2.6 and 234.4 nM, respectively), but has ~2-fold lower affinity than JJC8-016 at hERG (IC50 = 0.13 and 0.06 μM, respectively).
The present studies focused on recently synthesized atypical DAT inhibitors, CT-005094 and CT-005404. These compounds bind to DAT with high selectivity relative to the serotonin and norepinephrine transporters, and can elevate extracellular levels of DA as measured by microdialysis without stimulating DA release. In the present studies, CT-005094 and CT-005404 were assessed for their ability to reverse the effort-related motivational effects of tetrabenazine. Rats were tested using the fixed ratio 5/chow feeding choice test. Tetrabenazine (1.0 mg/kg) shifted choice behavior, decreasing lever pressing and increasing chow intake. CT-005094 was co-administered at doses ranging from 2.0-16.0 mg/kg IP, and the 8.0 mg/kg dose partially but significantly reversed the effects of tetrabenazine. CT-005404 was orally active, and reversed the effects of tetrabenazine in the dose range of 15.0-30.0 mg/kg PO. Atypical DAT inhibitors such as CT-005094 and CT-005404 offer potential as a new avenue for drug treatment of motivational dysfunctions in humans.
The assessment of two other modafinil-based atypical DAT inhibitors, CT-005404 and CT-0050904, in the reversal of the [...]
Among these advancements is lauflumide (NLS-4), a forward step from earlier substances initially envisioned by Lafon Laboratories yet not realized (Dowling et al., 2017). Developed by NLS Pharmaceutics AG, lauflumide represents a cutting-edge development as a selective dopamine reuptake inhibitor. It is an enantiomerically pure R-isomer, with an enantiomeric excess exceeding 95 %, of a bis(p-fluoro) phenyl ring-substituted derivative of modafinil, showcasing the innovative work of inventor Eric Konofal (USPTO Patent 2017, US9637447B2) (Konofal, 2017). Unlike modafinil, which induces hepatic enzyme activity with repeated doses, lauflumide does not act as an inducer of cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes, including CYP3A4/5. In mouse models, lauflumide has demonstrated potent wake-promoting effects without the risk of hypersomnia rebound (unpublished data). Moreover, the recovery sleep following lauflumide administration is marked by a reduced amount of NREM sleep and delta wave activity, indicating a decreased need for recovery sleep despite extended periods of wakefulness induced by the drug (Luca et al., 201 ).
Preliminary findings suggest that NLS-4 is a selective dopamine reuptake inhibitor, blocking (83%) dopamine transporter (DAT), higher than methylphenidate and without deleterious effects on peripheral adrenergic systems involved in hypertension (Study 100014859 CEREP 20/03/14, unpublished data).