Severe aggression in rats induced by mescaline but not other hallucinogens
Robert J. Sbordone, Joseph A. Wingard, David A. Gorelick, Mark L. Elliott
Psychopharmacology December 1, 1979 DOI: 10.1007/bf00428319 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Controlled experiment Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Male Sprague-Dawley rats |
| Interventions | Mescaline Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) Psilocin N N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) 3 4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine (DMPEA) 5-hydroxydopamine (5-OHDA) |
| Dose | Mescaline 50 or 250 mg; LSD 25-400 micrograms/kg; Psilocin 2.0 mg/kg; DMT 5 mg/kg; DMPEA not specified; 5-OHDA 8-200 mg/kg |
| Topics | LSD Mescaline |
| Keywords | Hallucinogen Biting Aggression Pharmacology |
| Citations | 16 |
| Key findings | Mescaline uniquely induces pathological biting aggression in rats exposed to foot shock, an effect not produced by LSD, psilocin, DMT, DMPEA, or 5-OHDA. |
Abstract
Pairs of male Sprague-Dawley rats were administered mescaline, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), psilocin, N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), 3,4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine (DMPEA), or 5-hydroxydopamine (5-OHDA) IP prior to being placed in a shock-elicited aggression situation. When foot shock was delivered, controls struck each other with their forepaws, but never engaged in either biting or injurious fighting. Mescaline-treated rats (50 or 250 mg) rarely struck each other, but engaged in nearly lethal biting. While LSD (25--400 micrograms/kg), psilocin (2.0 mg/kg), and DMT (5 mg/kg) produced some biting, this did not significantly differ from controls and never resulted in injuries. At higher doses, psilocin, DMT, and DMPEA decreased the amount and intensity of fighting. Rats treated with 5-OHDA (8--200 mg/kg) or LSD (25--400 micrograms/kg) did not differ from controls. These results suggest that mescaline's ability to induce pathological aggression in rats exposed to foot shock is not shared by other hallucinogens or nonhallucinogenic mescaline analogues.
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 10
- Chronic, Intermittent Microdoses of the Psychedelic N , N -Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) Produce Positive Effects on Mood and Anxiety in Rodents ACS Chemical Neuroscience March 4, 2019
- Effects of hallucinogenic agents mescaline and phencyclidine on zebrafish behavior and physiology Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry January 10, 2012
- Mescaline effects on rat behavior and its time profile in serum and brain tissue after a single subcutaneous dose Psychopharmacology October 6, 2007
- Animal Behavior in Psychedelic Research. Pharmacological Reviews October 1, 2022
- Unraveling psilocybin's therapeutic potential: behavioral and neuroplasticity insights in Wistar-Kyoto and Wistar male rat models of treatment-resistant depression. Psychopharmacology July 4, 2024
and 5 more in the library
Cites 4
- Effects of N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and 5-Methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeODMT) on shock elicited fighting in rats Pharmacology, Biochemistry, and Behavior July 1, 1978
- Mescaline produces pathological aggression in rats regardless of age or strain Pharmacology, Biochemistry, and Behavior May 1, 1978
- Facilitation and disruption by mescaline and 3,4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine of shock avoidance in rats Psychopharmacology 1977
- Mescaline treated rats attack immobile targets Pharmacology, Biochemistry, and Behavior September 1, 1975