Liquid forms of drugs which are otherwise salts etc.

[Nagelfar]

So are lab grade liquid forms of drugs: liquid oxycodone, liquid cocaine (for dental surgery etc), liquid morphine, etc, a hydrochloride or tartrate etc just as the solid powder forms?

If so does that mean they are just certain part drug certain part saline or such like when preparing a shot of the solid form of drug? If that is the case isn't more properly such a thing a 'oxycodone solution' or a 'morphine solution' rather than liquid oxycodone or liquid morphine?

Otherwise in what other manner is the drug 'liquified' and how does that change its properties? If for example, liquid cocaine is some other substance rather than the common solid soluble forms (hydrochloride) it can't be closer to base and still somehow be administered can it? It must be akin to having some different properties I'm guessing, rather than solid Hcl or freebase. That's my question.

 

[wungchow]

The molecular weight of drugs such as morphine, cocaine, etc. is too high to be a liquid at room temperature, whether it's in freebase or salt form. So when people say "liquid cocaine" it means a solution of cocaine in a solvent such as water or glycerol.

In my experience it's usually addicts dicksizing when they say something like "Duuuude i stole this pharmaceutical liquid morphine from the hospital, it was sooo potent!!" as if pure morphine is a liquid. It's not.

The only pure liquid drugs you'll encounter are ethanol, chloral hydrate, stuff like that.

 

[Nagelfar]

The molecular weight of drugs such as morphine, cocaine, etc. is too high to be a liquid at room temperature, whether it's in freebase or salt form. So when people say "liquid cocaine" it means a solution of cocaine in a solvent such as water or glycerol.

In my experience it's usually addicts dicksizing when they say something like "Duuuude i stole this pharmaceutical liquid morphine from the hospital, it was sooo potent!!" as if pure morphine is a liquid. It's not.

The only pure liquid drugs you'll encounter are ethanol, chloral hydrate, stuff like that.

Ah so it *is* a solution, that's what would make sense to me, but I was interested.

I suppose a follow up question would be: In labs what are the common mixtures to make the solution or is that not a widely standardized thing? Are there brand names for the drugs when provided to hospitals in liquid form that are different from the generic names commonly? I'm assuming when a drug is commonly a hcl, the liquid solution is of that hcl too?

 

[MurphyClox]

The only pure liquid drugs you'll encounter are ethanol, chloral hydrate, stuff like that.

...and, being bigger than these 2 but still smaller than coke:
(Meth)Amphetamine-freebase, as well as MDMA-free base. In fact, a lot of free bases are liquid. Unfortunately, they are unstable, too (oxidation upon contact with air), that is just one reason why normally salts are used.

Murphy

 

[dread]

What about crystal meth.

 

[Hammilton]

it's a hydrochloride salt.

the freebase is an oil.

 

[smackem]

THC delta9 is a clear oil in pure form!~

 

[Hammilton]

Sure, but it's also not a freebase and I don't think it's possible to make a salt of it (if it is, it's a labor intensive process).

 

[MurphyClox]

Nope...to my knowledge all THC-'prodrugs' are not salts but rather esters. (I know: A salt is technically not a prodrug). THC doesn't have functional groups that allow convenient formation of a salt, the hydroxy being the only one (but its pKa is too high).

I wonder if a phosphate-ester could be done with THC, thus increasing solubility. Very much like the psilocybin/psilocin-analogy. Aromatic phosphate-esters are stable...

Murphy

 

[Hammilton]

Unfortunately somebody beat ya to it

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/THC-O-phosphate

THC phosphate ester is a water soluble derivative of THC, invented in 1978 in an attempt to get around the poor water solubility of THC and make it easier to inject for the purposes of animal research into its pharmacology and mechanism of action. The main disadvantage of THC phosphate ester is the slow rate of hydrolysis of the ester link, resulting in delayed onset of action and lower potency than the parent drug.

THC phosphate ester is made by reacting THC with phosphoryl chloride using pyridine as a solvent, following by quenching with water to produce THC phosphate ester. In the original research the less active but more stable isomer Δ8THC was used, but the same reaction scheme could be used to make the phosphate ester of the more active isomer Δ9THC. [1]


^ Yoshimura H, Watanabe K, Oguri K, Fujiwara M, Ueki S. Synthesis and pharmacological activity of a phosphate ester of delta8-tetrahydrocannabinol. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry. 1978 Oct;21(10):1079-81.

 

[MurphyClox]

BAH!!! My idea... But I still wonder why ester hydrolysis is this slow compared to psilocybine. What a pity. Otherwise a really wonderful idea. Do you think that could be a way to bypass first-pass-metabolism?

Edit: And I need that ref! Was that stuff ever tested in humans?
Edit2: And take that fu%$*8g delta9,YEAH!

 

[vecktor]

BAH!!! My idea... But I still wonder why ester hydrolysis is this slow compared to psilocybine. What a pity. Otherwise a really wonderful idea. Do you think that could be a way to bypass first-pass-metabolism?

probably slow to hydrolyse because it is still very poorly soluble in water and the other shrubbery at the ortho position to the ester inhibits enzymatic attack by phosphatases or whatever esterase cleaves it.

I am probably wrong but I think that primary metabolism of thc concerned with oxidation of the side chain and opening of the pyran ring?

 

[MurphyClox]

...nope. main metabolism includes hydroxylation of the 9-methyl, followed by oxidation to the corresponding carboxylic acid. This get then conjugated with glucuronide and excreeted...