Human Psychopharmacology Clinical and Experimental
May 1, 2017
Barbara Loi, Mire Zloh, Maria Antonietta De Luca et al.
17 citations
4,4'-DMAR ("Serotoni") is a potent stimulant recently linked to multiple fatalities in Europe. Online drug-forum discussions provide technical knowledge about its use, including routes of administration, doses, desired and adverse effects, comparisons with other drugs, combinations, medications used to reverse its action, and harm-reduction advice. A critical review of evidence-based literature together with qualitative data from six website fora reveals that while netnography (social-network web monitoring) has methodological limitations, it can help clarify clinical and psychopharmacological issues for novel psychoactive substances like 4,4'-DMAR, for which scientific knowledge is extremely scarce.
The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology
May 1, 2024
Gessica Piras, Cristina Cadoni, Francesca Caria et al.
3 citations
The synthetic stimulant 2-Cl-4,5-MDMA, an NPS linked to severe intoxications, increased dopamine and serotonin levels in the nucleus accumbens shell and medial prefrontal cortex of rats in a dose-, brain area-, and age-dependent manner. In adult rats, dopamine rose more markedly in both brain areas, while adolescent rats showed a greater serotonin increase in the nucleus accumbens shell. The drug stimulated locomotion and stereotyped activity more in adolescents but did not trigger 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations, suggesting no positive affective properties. These findings indicate age-dependent neurochemical and behavioral effects, helping to assess health risks from human use.
Neuropharmacology
January 1, 2019
Giulia Costa, Marcello Serra, Nicholas Pintori et al.
Repeated administration of the novel psychoactive substance methoxetamine (MXE) to rats produced persistent behavioral abnormalities and neurotoxicity. Seven days after the last of five every-other-day doses (0.1–0.5 mg/kg), rats showed increased anxiety in the elevated plus maze and marble burying tests, and impaired non-spatial memory in the novel object recognition test. No effects on calling behavior or locomotor activity were observed. The same rats displayed dopaminergic damage in the medial prefrontal cortex, nucleus accumbens, caudate-putamen, substantia nigra pars compacta, and ventral tegmental area, along with serotonergic damage in the nucleus accumbens. These findings demonstrate for the first time that repeated MXE induces lasting behavioral changes and brain damage in rats, helping to elucidate risks for human consumers.
Frontiers in Pharmacology
January 1, 2019
Cristina Miliano, Matteo Marti, Nicholas Pintori et al.
25I-NBOMe (N-Bomb), a synthetic psychedelic often sold as fake LSD or as a substitute for MDMA, acts as a full agonist on serotonin 5-HT2A receptors. In rats, the drug alters dopamine transmission in the nucleus accumbens shell differently in males and females, impairs visual responses in both sexes, heavily affects core temperature in females, and at the highest dose tested produces an analgesic effect prominent in males. It also impairs startle amplitude and prepulse inhibition in both sexes. These findings highlight sex-specific risks of intoxication and overdose.