Mescaline effects on rat behavior and its time profile in serum and brain tissue after a single subcutaneous dose
Tomáš Páleníček, Marie Balı́ková, Vĕra Bubeníková‐valešová, Jiřı́ Horáček
Psychopharmacology October 6, 2007 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-007-0926-5 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Rats |
| Intervention | Mescaline |
| Dose | 10, 20, and 100 mg/kg subcutaneously |
| Duration | 15 and 60 minutes post-administration for behavioral tests; up to 12 hours for mortality observation; pharmacokinetics measured over time up to 60 minutes post-peak brain concentration |
| Topics | Mescaline |
| Keywords | Prepulse inhibition Pharmacology Pharmacokinetics Open field Drug Hallucinogen |
| Citations | 61 |
| Key findings | Mescaline produced delayed behavioral effects—inhibitory on locomotion at low doses and biphasic at the highest dose, and disrupted prepulse inhibition only at 60 minutes post-injection—which correlated with its pharmacokinetics in serum and brain. |
Abstract
RationaleMescaline is a nonselective serotonin receptor agonist. It has relatively delayed onset of action and prolonged duration. Mescaline attenuates various behavioral parameters in rats; however, no information is available about its pharmacokinetics in rats and its relation to the behavioral changes produced by the drug.ObjectivesThe present study evaluates the spontaneous locomotor activity and sensorimotor gating in relation to mescaline concentrations in the serum and the brain of ratsMaterials and methodsBehavioral changes induced by mescaline [10, 20, and 100 mg/kg subcutaneously (s.c.)] were evaluated in an open-field test and testing of the prepulse inhibition of acoustic startle reaction (PPI) 15 and 60 min after drug administration. The time disposition of mescaline 20 mg/kg s.c. in rat serum and brain homogenates was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.ResultsMescaline produced significant inhibitory effects on locomotion in low doses and a biphasic effect with the highest dose. In the PPI test, only when tested 60 min after drug administration, all doses of mescaline disrupted PPI. Besides the experimental protocol, we have observed that approximately 50% of animals receiving 100 mg/kg died within 12 h post-injection. The serum levels of mescaline rapidly increased within 30 min and subsequently quickly decreased; however, the brain concentrations reached a maximum 1 h after administration and remained high for an additional 60 min.ConclusionsMescaline had a delayed onset of the main behavioral changes in rats compared to other hallucinogens. Behavioral changes correlated with the pharmacokinetics of the drug.
Comparable studies
Other preclinical and animal studies on mescaline, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Correlation between the potency of hallucinogens in the mouse head-twitch response assay and their behavioral and subjective effects in other species. C57BL/6J mice | 2020 | Experimental study with dose-response experiments | |
| Brain mechanisms of hallucinogens and entactogens Humans and rats | 2001 | Review | |
| Effects of hallucinogenic agents mescaline and phencyclidine on zebrafish behavior and physiology Zebrafish (Danio rerio) | 2012 | Experimental study | |
| Lysergic Acid Diethylamide- and Mescaline-Induced Attenuation of the Effect of Punishment in the Rat Rats | 1976 | Experimental study | |
| Dihydrobenzofuran Analogues of Hallucinogens. 3. Models of 4-Substituted (2,5-Dimethoxyphenyl)alkylamine Derivatives with Rigidified Methoxy Groups Rats (trained to discriminate saline from LSD tartrate) and rat cortical and... | 1996 | In vivo drug discrimination assay and in vitro radioligand binding assay |
Citations in the library
Cited by 44
- Comparative acute effects of mescaline, lysergic acid diethylamide, and psilocybin in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over study in healthy participants. Neuropsychopharmacology October 1, 2023
- Effects of hallucinogenic agents mescaline and phencyclidine on zebrafish behavior and physiology Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry January 10, 2012
- Effect of Hallucinogens on Unconditioned Behavior Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences 2016
- Pharmacokinetic and Pharmacodynamic Aspects of Peyote and Mescaline: Clinical and Forensic Repercussions Current Molecular Pharmacology October 15, 2018
- Mescaline: The forgotten psychedelic Neuropharmacology October 14, 2022
and 39 more in the library
Cites 22
- Mescaline-induced psychopathological, neuropsychological, and neurometabolic effects in normal subjects: experimental psychosis as a tool for psychiatric research. Biological Psychiatry December 1, 1992
- 5HT-2 mediation of acute behavioral effects of hallucinogens in rats Psychopharmacology March 1, 1990
- The roles of 5-HT1A and 5-HT2 receptors in the effects of 5-MeO-DMT on locomotor activity and prepulse inhibition in rats. Psychopharmacology December 1, 2006
- Dihydrobenzofuran Analogues of Hallucinogens. 4. Mescaline Derivatives Journal of Medicinal Chemistry September 1, 1997
- The effects of lysergic acid diethylamide and mescaline-derived hallucinogens on sensory-integrative function: tactile startle. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics December 1, 1978
and 17 more in the library