PRECLINICAL STUDY: Changes in leptin, ghrelin, growth hormone and neuropeptide‐Y after an acute model of MDMA and methamphetamine exposure in rats
Firas H Kobeissy, Jennifer A. Jeung, Matthew W Warren, Jacqueline E. Geier, Mark S. Gold
Addiction Biology October 2, 2007 DOI: 10.1111/j.1369-1600.2007.00083.x (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats |
| Interventions | MDMA Methamphetamine |
| Dose | 5, 20 and 40 mg/kg |
| Duration | 48 hours after drug administration |
| Topics | MDMA |
| Keywords | Ghrelin Appetite Methamphetamine Leptin Hormone Endocrinology Neuropeptide y receptor Self-administration Meth- Pharmacology |
| Citations | 47 |
| Key findings | MDMA and methamphetamine acutely alter serum leptin, ghrelin, growth hormone, and neuropeptide-Y levels in rats, which may underlie the appetite suppression seen in human drug users. |
Abstract
ABSTRACT Club drug abuse is a growing problem in the United States. Beyond addiction and toxicity are endocrine effects which are not well characterized. Specifically, the changes in appetite following exposure to drugs of abuse are an interesting but poorly understood phenomenon. Serum hormones such as leptin, ghrelin, growth hormone (GH), and neuropeptide‐Y (NP‐Y) are known to affect appetite, but have not been studied extensively with drugs of abuse. In this work, we examine the effects of club drugs 3,4‐methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) (ecstasy) and methamphetamine (METH) (doses of 5, 20 and 40 mg/kg) on serum concentrations of these hormones in adult male Sprague‐Dawley rats 6, 12, 24 and 48 hours after drug administration. In a dose‐dependent manner, MDMA was shown to cause transient significant decreases in serum leptin and GH followed by a base line recovery after 24 hours. Conversely, serum ghrelin increased and normalized after 24 hours. Interestingly, serum NP‐Y showed a steady decrease in both treatment of MDMA and METH at different time points and dosages. In humans, abuse of these drugs reduces eating. As evident from these data, acute administration of METH and MDMA had significant effects on different serum hormone levels involved in appetite regulation. Future studies should be performed to see how chronic, low dose drug administration would affect hormone levels and try to answer questions about the physiological mechanisms involved in the anorexic paradigm observed in drug use.
Comparable studies
Other preclinical and animal studies on MDMA, most cited first.
Citations in the library
Cited by 6
- Sex-Dependent Psychoneuroendocrine Effects of THC and MDMA in an Animal Model of Adolescent Drug Consumption PLoS One November 4, 2013
- The effect of MDMA on anterior pituitary hormones: a secondary analysis of a randomized placebo-controlled trial. Endocrine connections June 1, 2025
- Adolescent MDMA exposure diminishes the physiological and neurotoxic consequences of an MDMA binge in female rats Developmental Psychobiology July 1, 2014
- A repeated low-dose regimen of MDMA has transient next-day effects on locomotor activity, anxiety-like behavior, and brain serotonin levels, with no effect on anhedonia-like behavior, in both female and male rats Psychopharmacology March 4, 2026
- Sex-dependent effects of early maternal deprivation on MDMA-induced conditioned place preference in adolescent rats: possible neurochemical correlates. Toxicology September 6, 2013
and 1 more in the library
Cites 9
- 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine and 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine destroy serotonin terminals in rat brain: quantification of neurodegeneration by measurement of [3H]paroxetine-labeled serotonin uptake sites. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics September 1, 1987
- Cardiovascular and neuroendocrine effects and pharmacokinetics of 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine in humans. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics July 1, 1999
- 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) neurotoxicity in rats: a reappraisal of past and present findings Psychopharmacology March 15, 2006
- MDMA in Adolescent Male Rats Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences August 1, 2006
- An Appraisal of the Pharmacological and Toxicological Effects of a Single Oral Administration of 3,4‐Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) in the Rat Pharmacology & Toxicology May 1, 1997
and 4 more in the library