Noraporphines are a class of chemical compounds related to the aporphine alkaloids like nuciferine and glaucine and synthetic aporphines like apomorphine. They are N-desmethyl analogues of the aporphines. Some noraporphines are alkaloids similarly to aporphines, for instance nornuciferine and asimilobine occurring naturally in Nelumbo nucifera and other plants.
Some noraporphines, such as asimilobine, nornuciferine, MQ02-439 (1-methoxynoraporphine), and 11-chloroasimilobine, have been found to act as potent and selective serotonin 5-HT2C receptor agonists. Others, such as racemic asimilobine, 1-propoxy-2-hydroxynoraporphine, 11-methoxyasimilobine, 2-hydroxy-11-propoxynoraporphine, and 2-hydroxy-11-(2-methylallyl)oxynoraporphine, have been found to act as potent mixed serotonin 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C receptor agonists. Conversely, aporphines, like nuciferine, dicentrine, isolaureline, and crebanine, tend to be antagonists or very weak partial agonists of the serotonin 5-HT2A and/or 5-HT2C receptors, although exceptions with higher efficacy such as glaucine are known.
Many other noraporphine alkaloids are also known, including norlaureline, puterine, norstephalagine, norisocorydine, nordicentrine, norboldine (laurolistine), norpurpureine, norpredicentrine, laetanine, oduocine, norannuradhapurine, nornantenine, and norushinsunine (michelalbine), among others.
See also Aporphine alkaloid List of miscellaneous serotonin 5-HT2A receptor agonists
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