GHB & GBL

Gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid (Sodium Oxybate); Gamma-Butyrolactone

Gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid (Sodium Oxybate)

GHB is a CNS depressant used as an intoxicant. It has many street names, including Liquid Ecstasy and Liquid X. Xyrem is a trade name for gamma-hydroxybutyric acid or GHB. At recreational doses, GHB can cause a state of euphoria, increased enjoyment of movement and music, increased libido, increased sociability and intoxication. At higher doses, GHB may induce nausea, dizziness, drowsiness, agitation, visual disturbances, depressed breathing, amnesia, unconsciousness, and death. The effects of GHB can last from 1.5 to 3 hours or even longer if large doses have been consumed or if it is mixed with alcohol.

In general, the doses used recreationally are between 500 mg and 3000 mg, corresponding to approximately 0.5–3 mL of liquid if the concentration is 1 gram / 1 mL (which is not always the case). When used as a recreational drug, GHB may be found as the sodium or potassium salt, which is a white crystalline powder, or as GHB salt dissolved in water to form a clear solution - generally at a concentration of 1 gram / 1 mL and so is twice the strength of the Xyrem solution sold legally for medical use. The sodium salt of GHB has a thin, very salty, chemical taste.

GHB salt dissolved in water is notoriously dangerous, as the concentration of GHB may not be known, and so the actual dose of GHB being consumed can be difficult to judge accurately. Since GHB sold for recreational use is subject to no standardisation it can be impossible to verify the actual concentration of GHB solution bought on the illicit market. Other salt forms such as calcium GHB and magnesium GHB have also been reported, but the sodium salt is by far the most common.

Some chemicals convert to GHB in the stomach and blood. GBL, or gamma-Butyrolactone, is one such prodrug. Other prodrugs include 1,4-butanediol. There may be additional toxicity concerns with these precursors. 1,4-B and GBL are normally found as pure liquids, although they may be mixed with other more harmful solvents when intended for industrial use, e.g., as paint stripper or varnish thinner.

GHB can be produced in clandestine labs, and it is claimed that most of the GHB used in the US is illegally manufactured within its borders. While available as a prescription for sleep disorders in some other countries, GHB was banned (in the U.S.) by the FDA in 1990 because of the dangers associated with its use. However, on July 17, 2002 GHB was approved for treatment of cataplexy, often associated with narcolepsy. GHB is "colourless and odourless".

Since the 1970s club scene, club-goers have used a range of drugs to enhance their experience on the dance floor such as amyl nitrite "poppers" and cocaine; in the 1990s, newer "club drugs" became popular, such as ketamine and Ecstasy (MDMA). Like these other "club drugs," GHB is taken because users feel that it enhances the experience of being in a club or at a party; GHB is sometimes referred to as liquid ecstasy due to its tendency to produce euphoria and sociability and its use in the dance party scene.

Gamma-Butyrolactone

γ-butyrolactone is a hygroscopic colourless oily liquid with a weak characteristic odour and is soluble in water. Gamma-Butyrolactone is a common solvent and reagent in chemistry and is used as an aroma compound, as a stain remover, as a superglue remover, as a paint stripper, and as a solvent in some wet aluminium electrolytic capacitors.

The compound gamma-butyrolactone (GBL) was found in extracts from samples of unadulterated wines. This finding indicates that GBL is a naturally occurring component in some wines and may be present in similar products. The concentration detected was approximately 5 μg/mL and was easily observed using a simple extraction technique followed by GC/MS analysis.

Gamma-Butyrolactone can be synthesized from gamma-hydroxybutyric acid by removal of water or by distillation from such a mixture. It may also be obtained via oxidation of tetrahydrofuran (THF). One such process, which affords GBL in yields of up to 80%, utilises bromine generated in situ from an aqueous solution of sodium bromate and potassium hydrogen sulphate.

Chemistry

Gamma-Butyrolactone is a lactone. It is hydrolyzed under basic conditions, for example in a sodium hydroxide solution into sodium gamma-hydroxybutyrate, the sodium salt of gamma-hydroxybutyric acid. Under acidic conditions it forms an equilibrium mixture of both compounds.

Pharmacology

GBL is not active in its own right, its mechanism of action stems from its identity as a prodrug of gamma-hydroxybutyrate. The hypnotic effect of GHB is enhanced by combination with alcohol. A 2003 rat study showed that GBL in combination with ethanol showed a potentiated hypnotic effect, as the sleep-timing measure was longer than both of the individual components combined.

Pharmacokinetics

Gamma-Butyrolactone is rapidly converted into GHB by lactamase enzymes found in the blood. GBL is more lipophilic (fat soluble) than GHB, and so is absorbed faster and has higher bioavailability; the paradox is that this can mean that GBL has a faster onset of effects than GHB itself, even though it is a prodrug. The levels of lactamase enzyme can vary between individuals, and GBL is not active in its own right, so people who have never tried GBL before may have delayed or fewer effects than expected; however, once someone has taken GBL a few times, the production of lactamase enzymes is increased and he/she will feel the effects like normal.

Because of these pharmacokinetic differences, 1,4-B tends to be slightly less potent, slower to take effect but longer-acting than GHB, whereas GBL tends to be more potent and faster-acting than GHB, and has around the same duration.

Recreational use

GBL is a prodrug of GHB. To bypass GHB restriction laws, home synthesis kits were introduced to transform GBL and/or 1,4-butanediol into GHB. GBL can also be used as a recreational drug by itself. GBL overdose can cause severe sickness, coma and death.

Metabolism takes place in stomach and blood plasma. GBL is longer acting and has a shorter onset than GHB. Otherwise, effects are similar to GHB, although weight for weight it is significantly more powerful, meaning dosage must be lowered accordingly. If ingested undiluted through the oral route, GBL can irritate innards. It is possible for oral ingestion of GBL to cause nausea and other similar problems, possibly more so than with GHB.

A millilitre of pure GBL metabolizes to roughly 1.6g of GHB, so doses are measured in the single millilitre range, either taken all at once or sipped over the course of a night.

Although GBL is an unclassified drug in the United Kingdom, risk to people's lives is being recognised on the London Gay Scene, where use is more prevalent than other parts of the country. At the end of 2006, a campaign began to reduce the number of people using GBL in the area. The effects of this campaign are yet to be seen.

References

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