COCAINE

By Luqman Mohd Yusof

 CHEMICAL STRUCTURE AND
SCIENTIFIC NAME

Scientific Name:
methyl (1R,2R,3S,5S)-3- (benzoyloxy)-8-methyl-8-
azabicyclo[3.2.1] octane-2-carboxylate

Formula:
C17H21NO4
 HISTORY OF COCAINE
• Cocaine is a stimulant drug that’s made from the leaves of the
South American coca plant. For thousands of years,
indigenous people in the Amazon Rainforest and Andes
Mountains have chewed coca leaves to get an energetic high.
European scientists first isolated cocaine from coca leaves in
the 1850s. Once lauded as a medical “wonder drug,” experts
now recognize cocaine as one of the most addictive
substances on Earth.
• In 1884, Sigmund Freud, an Austrian neurologist who founded
the field of psychoanalysis, was fascinated with cocaine; wrote
a paper titled “Uber Coca,” which he described as a “song of
praise to this magical substance. He overlooked a major
downside to cocaine: addiction. Freud struggled for the next
12 years to break his cocaine habit.
• Another popular use of cocaine could also be found by the
drink “Coca-Cola”. American pharmacist John Stith Pemberton
founded Coca-Cola in 1886 with a beverage concoction of
cocaine and sugary syrup. However in 1903, the company
removed cocaine from its product. A move likely motivated
more by racial bias and tightening regulations than by
health concerns.
• By 1905, it had become popular to snort cocaine and
within five years, hospitals and medical literature had
started reporting cases of nasal damage resulting from
the use of this drug.
INVENTION OF COCAINE/CRACK
• Cocaine powder could be extracted from coca
leaves and The powder is usually mixed with
substances such as corn starch, talcum powder and/or
sugar or other drugs such as procaine or
amphetamines.
• There are other form of cocaine which is “Crack”. It
could be produced by dissolving powdered cocaine
in a mixture of water and ammonia and boiling it down
until a solid formed. Broken into smaller chunks, or
“rocks,” this solid form could be smoked.
• Smoking crack brings a short, intense high, making the
substance more addictive than powdered cocaine.
Crack was also a lot cheaper than cocaine powder. In
1985, crack sold for about five dollars a rock in most
cities.
COCAINE USERS BEFORE AND AFTER
 REFERENCE TO BACK UP
• National Institute on Drug Abuse. 2019. What are the long-term effects of cocaine use? | National Institute on
Drug Abuse (NIDA). [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-
reports/cocaine/what-are-long-term-effects-cocaine-use. [Accessed 20 June 2019].
• The Recovery Village. 2019. How Harmful Is Cocaine to Your Health?. [ONLINE] Available
at: https://www.therecoveryvillage.com/cocaine-addiction/faq/harmful-to-health/#gref. [Accessed 20 June
2019].
• WebMD. 2019. Cocaine: Short and Long-Term Side-Effects & Treatment of Addiction. [ONLINE] Available
at: https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/addiction/cocaine-use-and-its-effects#1. [Accessed 20 June 2019].
• Your Room. 2019. Cocaine Side Effects, Addiction & Overdose | Your Room . [ONLINE] Available
at: https://yourroom.health.nsw.gov.au/a-z-of-drugs/Pages/cocaine.aspx. [Accessed 20 June 2019].
• myDr.com.au. 2019. Cocaine: what are the effects? - myDr.com.au. [ONLINE] Available at:
https://www.mydr.com.au/addictions/cocaine-what-are-the-effects. [Accessed 20 June 2019].
• Cocaine - Better Health Channel. 2019. Cocaine - Better Health Channel. [ONLINE] Available
at: https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/HealthyLiving/cocaine. [Accessed 20 June 2019].
• Drug Aware. 2019. Cocaine | Drug Aware. [ONLINE] Available at: https://drugaware.com.au/getting-the-
facts/drug-types/cocaine/. [Accessed 20 June 2019].