(+)-3-PPP antagonizes the discriminative stimulus effects of (+)-N-allylnormetazocine

The functional significance of the reported affinity of (+)-3-PPP and (+)-N-allylnormetazocine (NANM) for the same binding site in rat brain membranes was assessed by studying (+)-3-PPP as a agonist and antagonist of (+)-NANM in rats trained to discriminate 5.0 mg/kg (+)-NANM from saline. Over a wide dose range, (+)-3-PPP was able to block the discriminative stimulus effects of (+)-NANM, with complete antagonism at 1.0 mg/kg i.p. Since (+)-NANM is a prototype sigma-opioid agonist, (+)-3-PPP is a good candidate for being a competitive sigma antagonist.