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Comment by Elriuhilu at 11/01/2020 at 12:02 UTC
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Dextroamphetamine (or dexamphetamine) is the right handed isomer of the simplest amphetamine (levoamphetamine is the left handed one which doesn't have an effect on humans). Methylamphetamine (also known as methamphetamine) is also an amphetamine which differs from the simplest version only in that it has an extra methyl group attached to the molecule. This methyl group helps the molecule enter the brain more efficiently than amphetamine without it, thereby increasing the proportion of a dose that reaches the brain. Once in the brain, the methyl group is removed and the molecule reverts to simple amphetamine, which goes on to affect the brain in a psychoactive way.
Long story short, dexamphetamine and methamphetamine are slightly different versions of the same thing with different potencies but the same effect.
It's exactly the same as how codeine, morphine and heroin (diacetylmorphine) are all slightly different versions of the same thing that vary in strength. All three of them convert back to morphine in the brain which is what has the main effect. Even heroin changes back to morphine, which is what makes you high. Heroin is just much better at entering the brain than simple morphine, so you get a much higher effective dose for the same amount of drug administered.