In the UK, mephedrone and other so-called 'legal high' derivatives have recently been classified as Class B, Schedule I under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. Since then, alternative products have been advertised on a number of websites. In order to obtain an immediate snapshot of the situation, 24 products were purchased online from 18 UK-based websites over a period of 6 weeks following the ban in April 2010. Qualitative analyses were carried out by gas chromatography ion trap mass spectrometry using electron-and chemical ionization modes, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and comparison with reference standards. Overall, the purchased products consisted of single cathinones or cathinone mixtures including mephedrone, butylone, 4-methyl-N-ethylcathinone, flephedrone (4-fluoromethcathinone) and MDPV (3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone), respectively. Benzocaine, caffeine, lidocaine, and procaine were also detected. The emphasis was placed on 'Energy 1' (NRG-1), a product advertised as a legal replacement for mephedrone-type derivatives usually claiming to contain naphyrone (naphthylpyrovalerone, O-2482). It was found that 70% of NRG-1 and NRG-2 products appeared to contain a mixture of cathinones banned in April 2010 and rebranded as 'new' legal highs, rather than legal chemicals such as naphyrone as claimed by the retailers. Only one out of 13 NRG-1 samples appeared to show analytical data consistent with naphyrone. These findings also suggest that both consumers and online sellers (unlike manufacturers and wholesalers) are, most likely unknowingly, confronted with the risk of criminalization and potential harm.

In adolescents, heavy alcohol use is associated with biased attentional processing of alcohol-related cues and a shorter-term focus in decision making.

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Nicotine deprivation increases impulsive choices for both cigarette and monetary rewards in a delay-discounting task. Results from a behavioural economic simulation suggest that increases in the price of cigarettes may increase smokers' spending on cigarettes, while also reducing the number of cigarettes purchased.

AimsWe investigated reciprocal prospective relationships between multiple behavioural impulsivity tasks (assessing delay discounting, risk-taking and disinhibition) and alcohol involvement (consumption, drunkenness and problems) among adolescents. We hypothesized that performance on the tasks would predict subsequent alcohol involvement, and that alcohol involvement would lead to increases in behavioural impulsivity over time.DesignCross-lagged prospective design in which impulsivity and alcohol involvement were assessed five times over 2 years (once every 6 months, on average).SettingClassrooms in secondary schools in North West England.ParticipantsTwo hundred and eighty-seven adolescents (51.2% male) who were aged 12 or 13 years at study enrolment.MeasurementsParticipants reported their alcohol involvement and completed computerized tasks of disinhibition, delay discounting and risk-taking at each assessment. Cross-sectional and prospective relationships between the variables of interest were investigated using cross-lagged analyses.FindingsAll behavioural impulsivity tasks predicted a composite index of alcohol involvement 6 months later (all Ps < 0.01), and these prospective relationships were reliable across the majority of time-points. Importantly, we did not observe the converse relationship across time: alcohol involvement did not predict performance on behavioural impulsivity tasks at any subsequent time point.ConclusionsSeveral measures of impulsivity predict escalation in alcohol involvement in young adolescents, but alcohol use does not appear to alter impulsivity.

Traveling across time zones causes disruption to the normal circadian rhythms and social schedules because of travelers' shift in time. As the endogenous circadian timing system adapts slowly to new time cues, the phase relationship between biological rhythms and external time cues are out of synchronization for a period of time. This disturbance of circadian rhythms has been shown to impair physical and psychological health (Winget et al., 1984). To test the effects of repeated jet lag on mental abilities, airline cabin crew were compared with ground crew. Salivary cortisol was used as a physiological marker for circadian disruption. The cabin crew group, who had a history of repeated jet lag, had significantly higher salivary cortisol levels in an average working day. In addition, this elevated level of cortisol was only seen in the same subjects when the cabin crew were on transmeridian flights but not domestic flights. Cabin crew also exhibited cognitive deficits, possibly in working memory, that became apparent after several years of chronic disruption of circadian rhythms.

A large number of cathinone derivatives have shown a wide range of bioactive properties, attracting great interest from communities associated with pharmaceutical research. Some of these derivatives have gained popularity as so-called recreational 'legal highs' due to their availability on the Internet and high street shops. A previous study described the qualitative analysis of 24 'legal high' Energy-1 (NRG-1) and NRG-2 products obtained from 18 websites following the ban on mephedrone and derivatives in April 2010. The majority of these products contained a mixture of cathinones just carrying a new label. Here, three additional cathinone products have been detected; two from an NRG-1 sample and one from an NRG-3 sample. This report describes their identification. NRG-1 sample 1 consisted of a mixture of 4 cathinones namely 4-fluoromethcathinone (1), 1-(3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-(methylamino)pentan-1-one (pentylone, 2), 3,4-methylenedioxy-α-pyrrolidinobutyrophenone (MDPBP, 3) and 3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV, 4). The sample labelled as NRG-3 (mislabelled with the chemical structure of mephedrone) consisted of a mixture of 4-methyl-α-pyrrolidinopropiophenone (MPPP, 5) and (2), whereas the remaining NRG-1 sample 2 (also mislabelled with the chemical structure of mephedrone) consisted of a mixture of (2) and (3). Qualitative analyses were carried out by GC-(EI/CI)-MS, NMR spectroscopy and confirmation by preparation of standards. The preparation of brominated precursors carrying the 3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl nucleus revealed extensive α,α-dibromination: the mass spectral and NMR data of these intermediates are also presented and discussed.

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