Pharmacological characterization of morphine-6-sulfate and codeine-6-sulfate

Morphine-6-sulfate (M6S) and codeine-6-sulfate (C6S) are mu-selective opiates which have been isolated from brain. M6S is an effective analgesic, with a 30-fold greater potency than morphine in the mouse radiant heat tailflick assay and similar to the active morphine metabolite morphine-6beta-glucuronide (M6G). M6S analgesia is reversed by 3-methoxynaltrexone at low antagonist doses which are inactive against morphine, suggesting that M6S may be acting through the same mechanisms as M6G. Consistent with this possibility, antisense mapping of the MOR-1 clone revealed that M6S analgesia was lowered by probes targeting exon 2 and not by targeting exon 1, a sensitivity profile similar to that of M6G and not morphine. C6S also has analgesic activity at doses approximately 10-fold greater than M6S. However, its characterization was impeded by the appearance of seizures at doses below full analgesic activity. Thus, M6S is a potent analgesic with pharmacological properties similar to M6G. C6S has limited utility due to its high level of toxicity.