![]() ![]() It is called a reductive amination, and, unlike the phosphorous iodine mess, it is clean and very easy. ![]() In the absence of pseudoephedrine, all that was needed was another method, and Walter White found one, which is far superior to the first. So, did removing Sudafed from the shelves of pharmacies accomplish anything except increase sales of Kleenex? Not much, since we organic chemists are a nothing if not creative. The product of this reaction is 3-(2-aminopropyl)phenol, (aka gepefrin), which is a mediocre blood pressure drug sold in Europe. So if you react phenylephrine with phosphorous and iodine it only the OH in the green circle is affected. But the hydroxyl group in the blue circle (called a phenolic group) is chemically unreactive. Phenylephrine contains two different hydroxyl (OH) groups, as shown in the blue and green circles. The second reaction (below) is quite different. ![]() It's messy and dangerous, but it works well enough. Walter White used phosphorous and iodine, a method that no organic chemist in a real lab (and in his right mind) would use. There are a number of chemical reagents that can be used for this transformation. In the first reaction (above), a simple chemical transformation of a hydroxyl (OH) group (green circle) into a hydrogen atom-a process called reduction-is all that is needed to convert (relatively) harmless pseudoephedrine into methamphetamine, which is anything but harmless. Before we take a look at the chemistry that explains this, here is a detailed pharmacological comparison of the two drugs: Sudafed was replaced by another decongestant Sudafed PE, which cannot be converted to methamphetamine, but doesn't work as well. The Act was intended to put a dent in the illegal production of methamphetamine, which was heavily abused at that time, especially in poorer areas of the US. To get the decongestant you now have to sniff out the pharmacist counter and hand over your driver's license. If you've watched Breaking Bad you know very well that pseudoephedrine can be chemically modified to produce methamphetamine, aka crystal meth, which is why Sudafed was taken off pharmacy shelves in 2006 (1). It began with Sudafed, which contains the drug pseudoephedrine. The drug phobia that now has us firmly in its grip, you know, the "let's restrict everything" mentality, didn't start with Vicodin, Valium, or Ritalin. ![]()
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