Psychedelic bliss : memory and risk taking during MDMA intoxication
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review |
|---|---|
| Intervention | MDMA |
| Topics | MDMA Serotonin |
| Keywords | Ingestion Dopaminergic Pharmacology Hallucinogen |
| Citations | 2 |
| Key findings | MDMA causes two phases of serotonin depletion: an acute reversible phase within hours and a longer neurotoxic phase lasting up to 7 days, with potential neuronal damage in animals under repeated high dosing. |
Abstract
In addition to the positive effects, ecstasy use is also accompanied by short-term side effects occurring early, with respect to administration, and later on.Early short time side effects i.e. fatigue, lack of energy and difficulty concentrating, arise approximately 24 hours after MDMA ingestion.Late short-term side effects occur up to 7 days post-drug and are more or less comparable to early short time effects with the exception that they last longer (de la Torre et al., 2004).MDMA produces these positive and negative effects through the interaction with several neurotransmitter systems such as the serotonergic (5-HT), dopaminergic, noradrenergic, cholinergic and histaminergic systems.The main effect of MDMA is on the serotonergic system where it acts as a powerful indirect 5-HT agonist.MDMA causes an increased release of 5-HT, a blockade of the 5-HT reuptake mechanism, and inhibition of tryptophan hydroxylase, the precursor involved in the synthesis of 5-HT (Britt & McCance Katz, 2005; Schmidt & Kehne, 1990).Animal studies have shown that following ingestion of MDMA, there are two depletion phases of 5-HT.The increased release of 5-HT combined with the absence of reuptake and synthesis causes the 5-HT to be depleted in the first 3 to 6 hours after administration of MDMA.This first phase is depicted as the acute and reversible phase as it disappears within 12 hours, when the levels of 5-HT have returned to normal.The second depletion phase arises between 24 hours and 7 days post-drug, and is called the long-term or neurotoxic phase.This is because this second phase can be accompanied by the loss of 5-HT uptake sites, an indication of neurotoxic damage (Green, Mechan, Elliott, O'Shea, & Colado, 2003; Schmidt & Kehne, 1990).This persistent damage to neurons has been shown to occur in animals when administrated MDMA following a repeated high dosing scheme (Ricaurte, Yuan, & McCann, 2000).Whether it is justified to extrapolate these data to humans is however a topic of debate because of differences between animal studies and humans e.g.dosage, and the route of administration (De La Torre & Farre, 2004;Rattray, 1991).An indication for the second 5-HT depletion phase in humans is the existence of lowered mood, a few days after the use of ecstasy, or the so called 'mid-week depression', (Curran & Travill, 1997).Furthermore, there are also imaging studies showing signs of structural changes in heavy users e.g.lower 5-HT transporter densities, although these changes are possibly temporary (Green et al., 2003; Reneman, de Win, van den Brink, Booij, & den Heeten, 2006).Serotonin is a widespread neurotransmitter that is involved in diverse physiologic and cognitive processes.An example of a cognitive function in which 5-HT is implicated is memory performance.In several studies it has been shown DAY 1 DAY 2
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on MDMA, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Human Pharmacology of MDMA | 2004 | Review | |
| Human psychopharmacology of Ecstasy (MDMA): a review of 15 years of empirical research | 2001 | Review | |
| 3,4‐Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, “Ecstasy”): pharmacology and toxicology in animals and humans | 1994 | Review | |
| (±)3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (‘Ecstasy’)-Induced Serotonin Neurotoxicity: Studies in Animals | 2000 | Review | |
| Amphetamine toxicities | 2010 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 2
Cites 50
- Human Pharmacology of MDMA Therapeutic Drug Monitoring March 19, 2004
- Memory impairment in abstinent MDMA ("Ecstasy") users Neurology December 1, 1998
- Cardiovascular and neuroendocrine effects and pharmacokinetics of 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine in humans. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics July 1, 1999
- Human psychopharmacology of Ecstasy (MDMA): a review of 15 years of empirical research Human Psychopharmacology: Clinical and Experimental December 1, 2001
- Impaired cognitive performance in drug free users of recreational ecstasy (MDMA) Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry June 1, 2000
and 45 more in the library