Brain Recognition Sites for Methylphenidate and the Amphetamines Their Relationship to the Dopamine Transport Complex, Glucoreceptors, and Serotonergic Neurotransmission in the Central Nervous System

The stimulants methylphenidate, cocaine, and amphetamine remain among the most widely abused psychotropic drugs. However, amphetamine has long been considered a prototypic anorectic agent and, in the past, was used in the treatment of obesity.1-6 Although amphetamine has been used as a therapeutic agent, amphetamine can be a potent psychotomimetic, and tolerance can develop to its anorectic effects. 1-9 Consequently, the medical use of amphetamine has now been restricted to narcolepsy and childhood hyperkinesis. Methylphenidate is currently used in the treatment of attention-deficit disorder and minimal brain dysfunction in children to increase attention span and reduce hyperactivity. 10 Methylphenidate also has been proposed as an antidepressant and can potentiate conventional antidepressant medications in patients suffering from atypical depression. 10 Nevertheless, there is widespread