The effect of acutely administered MDMA on subjective and BOLD-fMRI responses to favourite and worst autobiographical memories
Robin Carhart-Harris, Matthew B. Wall, David Erritzøe, Mendel Kaelen, Bart Ferguson, Ineke de Meer, Mark Tanner, Michael Bloomfield, Tom A. Williams, Mark Bolstridge, Laura K. Stewart, Celia J. A. Morgan, Rexford D. Newbould, Amanda Feilding, Valerie H. Curran, David Nutt
The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology December 17, 2013 DOI: 10.1017/s1461145713001405 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Double-blind Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 19 |
| Population | Participants with previous experience with MDMA |
| Interventions | 3 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) ascorbic acid (placebo) |
| Dose | 100 mg of MDMA-HCl |
| Topics | MDMA |
| Keywords | Hallucinogen Autobiographical memory Recall Cognitive psychology Audiology |
| Citations | 110 |
| Key findings | MDMA increased brain activation in sensory and visual regions during recall of favorite memories and decreased activation in the anterior temporal cortex during recall of worst memories, consistent with a positive emotional bias. |
Abstract
3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is a potent monoamine-releaser that is widely used as a recreational drug. Preliminary work has supported the potential of MDMA in psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The neurobiological mechanisms underlying its putative efficacy are, however, poorly understood. Psychotherapy for PTSD usually requires that patients revisit traumatic memories, and it has been argued that this is easier to do under MDMA. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to investigate the effect of MDMA on recollection of favourite and worst autobiographical memories (AMs). Nineteen participants (five females) with previous experience with MDMA performed a blocked AM recollection (AMR) paradigm after ingestion of 100 mg of MDMA-HCl or ascorbic acid (placebo) in a double-blind, repeated-measures design. Memory cues describing participants' AMs were read by them in the scanner. Favourite memories were rated as significantly more vivid, emotionally intense and positive after MDMA than placebo and worst memories were rated as less negative. Functional MRI data from 17 participants showed robust activations to AMs in regions known to be involved in AMR. There was also a significant effect of memory valence: hippocampal regions showed preferential activations to favourite memories and executive regions to worst memories. MDMA augmented activations to favourite memories in the bilateral fusiform gyrus and somatosensory cortex and attenuated activations to worst memories in the left anterior temporal cortex. These findings are consistent with a positive emotional-bias likely mediated by MDMA's pro-monoaminergic pharmacology.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on MDMA, most cited first.
Citations in the library
Cited by 78
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- Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy: A Paradigm Shift in Psychiatric Research and Development Frontiers in Pharmacology July 5, 2018
- Novel psychopharmacological therapies for psychiatric disorders: psilocybin and MDMA. The Lancet Psychiatry April 5, 2016
- 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine-assisted psychotherapy for treatment of chronic posttraumatic stress disorder: A randomized phase 2 controlled trial. Journal of Psychopharmacology December 1, 2018
- MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD: Are memory reconsolidation and fear extinction underlying mechanisms? Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry June 8, 2018
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Cites 22
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- Pilot Study of Psilocybin Treatment for Anxiety in Patients With Advanced-Stage Cancer Archives of General Psychiatry September 7, 2010
- Amphetamine-type central nervous system stimulants release norepinephrine more potently than they release dopamine and serotonin Synapse 2000
- Mystical experiences occasioned by the hallucinogen psilocybin lead to increases in the personality domain of openness Journal of Psychopharmacology September 28, 2011
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