A comparative study of the therapeutic effects of some 4-chlorinated amphetamine derivatives in depressive patients.

The compounds 4-chloro-N-methylamphetamine (CMA) and 4-chloro-amphetamine (4-CA) are probably depletors of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT). This has been demonstrated as plausible in human subjects also. In rat brains, the 5-HT depleting potency of 4-CA exceeds that of CMA. In depressive patients, moreover, CMA behaves as an antidepressant. In view of these findings the following two hypotheses were tested. We found no unequivocal confirmation of these hypothesis. The possible causes of this failure are discussed, and avenues of further investigation are outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]