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Acute and prolonged effects of ibogaine on brain dopamine metabolism and morphine-induced locomotor activity in rats.

Isabelle M Maisonneuve, K L Rossman, R W Keller, Stanley D Glick

Brain Research March 13, 1992 DOI: 10.1016/0006-8993(92)90424-8 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Experimental study Peer reviewed
Population Rats
Interventions Ibogaine Morphine
Dose 40 mg/kg i.p. (ibogaine); 0.5-20 mg/kg i.p. (morphine)
Duration 1 hour to 1 month post-injection
Topics Ibogaine
Citations 86
Key findings Ibogaine produced a 50% decrease in dopamine and a 37–100% increase in HVA in three brain regions one hour after injection, and reduced morphine-induced locomotor activity for up to a week but not after a month.

Abstract

Ibogaine, an indolalkylamine, proposed for use in treating opiate and stimulant addiction, has been shown to modulate the dopaminergic system acutely and one day later. In the present study we sought to systematically determine the effects of ibogaine on the levels of dopamine (DA) and the dopamine metabolites 3,4 dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) and homovanillic acid (HVA) in tissue at several time points, between 1 h and 1 month post-injection. One hour after ibogaine-administration (40 mg/kg i.p.) a 50% decrease in DA along with a 37-100% increase in HVA were observed in all 3 brain regions studied: striatum, nucleus accumbens and prefrontal cortex. Nineteen hours after ibogaine-administration a decrease in DOPAC was seen in the nucleus accumbens and in the striatum. A week after administration of ibogaine striatal DOPAC levels were still reduced. A month after ibogaine injection there were no significant neurochemical changes in any region. We also investigated the effects of ibogaine pretreatment on morphine-induced locomotor activity, which is thought to depend on DA release. Using photocell activity cages we found that ibogaine pretreatment decreased the stimulatory motor effects induced by a wide range of morphine doses (0.5-20 mg/kg, i.p.) administered 19 h later; a similar effect was observed when morphine (5 mg/kg) was administered a week after ibogaine pretreatment. No significant changes in morphine-induced locomotion were seen a month after ibogaine pretreatment. The present findings indicate that ibogaine produces both acute and delayed effects on the tissue content of DA and its metabolites, and these changes coincide with a sustained depression of morphine-induced locomotor activity.

Comparable studies

Other preclinical and animal studies on ibogaine, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
Noncompetitive Functional Inhibition at Diverse, Human Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Subtypes by Bupropion, Phencyclidine, and Ibogaine TE671/RD cells (human muscle-type nAChR) and SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells (human... 1999 In vitro study
Degeneration of Purkinje cells in parasagittal zones of the cerebellar vermis after treatment with ibogaine or harmaline. Ibogaine- or harmaline-treated rats 1993 Experimental animal study
Effects and aftereffects of ibogaine on morphine self-administration in rats. Rats 1991 Preclinical experimental study
Effects of iboga alkaloids on morphine and cocaine self-administration in rats: relationship to tremorigenic effects and to effects on dopamine release in nucleus accumbens and striatum. Rats 1994 Experimental study
Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Mediates the Desirable Actions of the Anti-Addiction Drug Ibogaine against Alcohol Consumption Rats 2005 Experimental study

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