GoKawiilDEA Emergency-Schedules Experimental Opioid-Withdrawal Compound SR-17018
The DEA classified SR-17018, an experimental compound developed by University of South Florida researchers, as a Schedule I controlled substance in late August. The drug had been studied as a potential pain reliever that avoids the respiratory depression common to opioids, and some online drug-user communities had begun using it, unregulated by the FDA, to ease withdrawal and reduce opioid tolerance. Lead researcher Laura Bohn says the scheduling now blocks her team from testing, shipping, or manufacturing the compound for further safety studies.