Kalix P, Khan I
Bull World Health Organ. 1984;62(5):681-6.
The chewing of leaves of the khat shrub is common in certain countries of East Africa and the Arabian peninsula, and many khat users are subject to psychic dependence on the drug. The syndrome observed after khat consumption is characterized by a certain degree of CNS stimulation and by sympathomimetic effects; it is reminiscent of that induced by amphetamine.Recently, the alkaloid (-)-cathinone has been isolated from khat leaves and this substance produces effects in animals that are analogous to those of (+)-amphetamine and that correlate well with the effects observed in humans after khat consumption. Furthermore, it has been shown that (-)-cathinone acts by the same mechanism as (+)-amphetamine, i.e., by inducing release at physiological catecholamine storage sites. Taken together, these studies indicate that khat must be considered an amphetamine-like material.
咀嚼巧茶灌木的叶子在东非和阿拉伯半岛的某些国家很常见，许多巧茶使用者会对这种毒品产生精神依赖。食用巧茶后观察到的综合征的特征是一定程度的中枢神经系统刺激和拟交感神经效应；这让人联想到安非他命引起的综合征。最近，生物碱（-）-去甲伪麻黄碱已从巧茶叶中分离出来，这种物质在动物身上产生的效应与（+）-安非他命类似，并且与人类食用巧茶后观察到的效应密切相关。此外，已经表明（-）-去甲伪麻黄碱与（+）-安非他命的作用机制相同，即通过诱导生理性儿茶酚胺储存部位的释放。综上所述，这些研究表明巧茶必须被视为一种类似安非他命的物质。
