[Pharmacology of potential antidepressants of the N-L-phenylalanyl-beta-phenylalkylamine class].

The spectrum of the pharmacological activities of N-L-phenylalanyl L-2-amino-1-phenylpropane (13), the most active representative of the investigated L-N-phenylalanyl-beta-phenylalkylamines 11-20, comprises adrenergic (noradrenaline potentiation on the vas deferens of the rat, tetrabenazine antagonism in the mouse), as well as cholinergic blocking (acetylcholine antagonism on the jejunum of the rat, oxotremorine antagonism in the mouse, anti-aggressive activity in isolated mice) and localanesthetic properties (inhibition of conduction in the ventricular strip of the frog heart) as described for antidepressants. In its pharmacological behavior 13 meets rather an antidepressant than a psychotonic drug. The conception of a partial metabolic liberation of the latent amphetamine component in 13 and a certain contribution of amphetamine to the effect of 13 is supported by the fact that at higher dosages a shortening of the hexobarbital narcosis and an increase of the spontaneous activity in mice is seen.