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Mandrax

Methaqualone
Methaqualone2.svg
Methaqualone ball-and-stick model.png
Clinical data
Pronunciation /mɛθəˈkwln/
Pregnancy
category
  • US: D (Evidence of risk)
ATC code
Legal status
Legal status
Pharmacokinetic data
Protein binding 70-80%
Biological half-life Biphasic (10-40; 20-60 hours)
Identifiers
CAS Number
PubChem CID
DrugBank
ChemSpider
UNII
KEGG
ChEMBL
ECHA InfoCard 100.000.710
Chemical and physical data
Formula C16H14N2O
Molar mass 250.30 g/mol
3D model (JSmol)
Melting point 113 °C (235 °F)
  

Methaqualone, sold under the brand name Quaalude (pronounced /ˈkwld/; KWAY-lood) and sometimes stylized "Quāālude" in the US and Mandrax in the UK and South Africa, is a sedative and hypnotic medication. It is a member of the quinazolinone class.

The sedative–hypnotic activity of methaqualone was first noted by researchers in the 1950s. In 1962, methaqualone was patented in the US by Wallace and Tiernan. Its use peaked in the early 1970s as a hypnotic, for the treatment of insomnia, and as a sedative and muscle relaxant.

Methaqualone became increasingly popular as a recreational drug and club drug in the late 1960s and 1970s, known variously as "ludes" or "sopers" (also "soaps") in the U.S. and "mandrakes" and "mandies" in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. The drug was often used by hippies and by people who went dancing at glam rock clubs in the 1970s and at discos. The drug was so popular in the disco scene of the 1970s that the drug, sold under the brand name Quaaludes, was nicknamed "disco biscuits".

Methaqualone is a depressant that increases the activity of the GABA receptors in the brain and nervous system. When GABA activity is increased, blood pressure drops and the breathing and pulse rates slow, leading to a state of deep relaxation. These properties explain why methaqualone was originally mainly prescribed for insomnia. Methaqualone peaks in the bloodstream within several hours, with a half-life of 20–60 hours. Regular users build up a physical tolerance, requiring larger doses for the same effect. Overdose can lead to nervous system shutdown, coma and death.


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