Substituted ethylenedioxyphenethylamine
The substituted ethylenedioxyphenethylamines are a small group of psychoactive drugs of the phenethylamine family related to the substituted methylenedioxyphenethylamines. They include the amphetamines 3,4-ethylenedioxyamphetamine, 3,4-ethylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine, and 3-methoxy-4,5-ethylenedioxyamphetamine and the cathinone 3,4-ethylenedioxymethcathinone, among others.
EDxx compounds have been found act as monoamine releasing agents, including of serotonin, norepinephrine, and/or dopamine. However, they showed reduced potency in these assays compared to their MDxx counterparts like MDMA, MMDA, and methylone. Some, such as EDMA, have been assessed and variably found to produce psychoactive effects in humans. These effects have included paresthesia, nystagmus, sedation, hypnagogic imagery, and/or mild visual effects. However, at assessed doses, there were no entactogenic or stimulant effects and no or only mild hallucinogenic effects at best, which led to conclusions that they were essentially inactive.
EDxx compounds were tested by Alexander Shulgin and described in his 1991 book PiHKAL. They were first described in the scientific literature by Shulgin by 1964.