Pavine and isopavine alkaloids

Pavines and isopavines are two relatively small subgroups of the isoquinoline alkaloids, represented by 22 and 11 compounds, respectively. This chapter describes the occurrence and structure elucidation, synthesis, unnatural pavines and isopavines, spectral properties, biosynthesis, chemotaxonomic considerations, homopavines and homoisopavines, aporphine–pavine dimers, and pharmacology of pavine and isopavine alkaloids. The homopavines and homoisopavines constitute a very small group of unnatural bases which have been synthesized by some of the routes designed for the synthesis of pavine and isopavine alkaloids. The intermediates in the synthetic processes are the properly substituted 1-phenethylisoquinolines. Various pharmacological activities are attributed to the pavine alkaloids, but no pavinoid species is claimed as a therapeutic agent. A number of naturally occurring pavines and some of their simple analogs show weak analgesic activity in mice. Alterations in aromatic substitution do not result in increased potency. © 1987, Elsevier Science & Technology. All rights reserved.