D-Phenylalanine

D-Phenylalanine
Clinical data
Trade namesDeprenon, Sabiben, Sabiden
Other namesD-(+)-Phenylalanine; (R)-(+)-Phenylalanine; (R)-Phenylalanine; D-β-Phenylalanine; DPA; D-Phe
Routes of
administration
By mouth
Drug classAntidepressants; Enkephalinase inhibitors
Identifiers
  • (2R)-2-amino-3-phenylpropanoic acid
CAS Number
PubChem CID
DrugBank
ChemSpider
UNII
KEGG
ChEBI
ChEMBL
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)
ECHA InfoCard100.010.549
Chemical and physical data
FormulaC9H11NO2
Molar mass165.192 g·mol−1
3D model (JSmol)
  • C1=CC=C(C=C1)C[C@H](C(=O)O)N
  • InChI=1S/C9H11NO2/c10-8(9(11)12)6-7-4-2-1-3-5-7/h1-5,8H,6,10H2,(H,11,12)/t8-/m1/s1
  • Key:COLNVLDHVKWLRT-MRVPVSSYSA-N

D-Phenylalanine (DPA, D-Phe), sold under the brand names Deprenon, Sabiben, and Sabiden, is an enantiomer of phenylalanine which is described as an antidepressant and is marketed as a prescription drug for medical use in Argentina. The medication has been marketed since at least the 1970s and continued to be available by the 2000s.

D-Phenylalanine has been found to act as an enkephalinase inhibitor, an inhibitor of enkephalinase enzymes that break down endogenous opioid peptides called enkephalins. It has been found to produce anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and anti-craving effects in animal studies.