Methcathinone is stimulant that is a structural analogue of methamphetamine and cathinone. It is clandestinely manufactured from readily available chemicals. It is a white or off-white crystalline powder, most commonly snorted, although it can be taken orally by mixing it with a beverage or diluted in water and it can be injected intravenously. Methcathinone produces amphetamine-like activity.

The Basics:
Methcathinone was first created in Germany in the late 1920s from cathinone, a mind-altering substance found in the plant species Catha edulis (which also contains a related mind-altering chemical called cathine). For the next two decades, it served as an antidepressant and weight-loss medication in parts of Eastern Europe. In the US, recreational use of the drug began in the late 1980s in the Midwest, where most confirmed cases of use/abuse still occur. Unlike the original cathinone-based form of the drug, illicitly produced methcathinone is typically made with ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, two substances also used in the illegal manufacture of methamphetamine. Since the early 1990s, federal law has banned possession and use of the drug.

Like methamphetamine, amphetamine and cathinone, methcathinone achieves its mind-altering effects by changing normal levels of three key chemicals in the central nervous system-dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin-that function as neurotransmitters and relay the signals required for coordinated activity within this system. Methcathinone-related elevations in dopamine and norepinephrine levels trigger feelings of euphoria and overstimulation of the body's natural "fight-or-flight" reflex. Methcathinone-related decreases in serotonin levels tend to produce irritability and other emotions associated with a bad mood.

Methcathinone comes in powdered form. Most users inhale the drug nasally, although other potential forms of administration include smoking, ingestion, and injection. In most cases, a single dose of methcathinone lasts anywhere from four to six hours; however, many people take repeated doses over a period of several days. Common street names for the drug include Cat, Ephedrone, Jeff, and Bathtub Speed.

The drug is concocted from a "witches brew" of battery acid, Drano, and over-the-counter asthma medication, and can be manufactured in home kitchens.

The ingredients used in various recipes for homemade methcathinone include:

• ephedrine or pseudoephedrine (found in some over-the-counter asthma and cold medications)
• acetone (explosive paint solvent)
• muriatic acid (used in sandblasting and cleaning mortar off bricks)
• sulfuric acid (usually purchased from auto supply stores as battery acid)
• lye (usually in the form of a crystal drain cleaner such as Drano)
• sodium dichromate or potassium dichromate
• sodium hydroxide
• toulene (explosive paint thinner)

- https://www.nurseslearning.com/courses/corexcel/cxnrp-1600/chap6/course/chap1/P9.html

Date Published: 1994:
CAT is becoming one of the most popular synthetic or "designer" drugs in the United States today. About 1.5 times stronger than methamphetamine (the most frequently used synthetic drug in the country), CAT is a synthetic analog of cathinone, a potent, naturally occurring amphetamine found in the khat plant grown primarily in Somalia and Yemen. In the United States, illicit CAT was first produced in 1991 by graduate students in Michigan's upper peninsula. It quickly spread to Ann Arbor and then to neighboring Wisconsin and Illinois. The drug has since been found in 10 States, including Washington and Florida. Over 30 clandestine CAT laboratories have been seized thus far. CAT can easily be made by individuals with little or no background in chemistry from a laboratory set-up that can fit into a cardboard box or car trunk. Although street CAT costs approximately the same as cocaine, it is much cheaper to produce, making it highly profitable. To date, most known CAT producers in the United States have been relatively small-scale operators; however, its enormous profitability, its intense high, and its ease of production are beginning to attract larger scale distributors and criminal organizations as well.

https://www.ncjrs.gov/App/Publications/abstract.aspx?ID=153994

Risks:
Acute: Increased heart rate, hypertension, hyperthermia, dehydration, accidental injury, seizures, cardiac arrest, stroke, coma, fatal overdose

Chronic: addiction, tolerance, withdrawal, depression, infertility, heart damage Insufflation: nasal septum damage; Inhalation (smoking): lung damage.

Dangerous Drug Combinations:
Potentially fatal combination with other stimulants, depressants/sedatives, and seizure medications. Potentially dangerous mix with acetaminophen/paracetamol (Brand names: Tylenol, Triaminic, Panadol) and medications with risk of seizure.

Special Considerations:
Found increasingly in conjunction with methylenedioxypyrovalerone.

Usually Snorted:
Injecting this substance has recently been associated with symptoms similar to those seen in patients with Parkinson's Disease (Manganism) due to the compound manganese dioxide which is a byproduct of synthesis with permanganate. Methcathinone (alpha-methylamino-propiophenone or ephedrone) is a psychoactive stimulant, sometimes used as a recreational drug and considered addictive. It is usually snorted, but can be smoked, injected, or taken orally.

Metabocard for Methcathinone:
https://hmdb.ca/metabolites/HMDB0041927