Potentiation of (DL)‐3,4‐methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)‐induced toxicity by the serotonin 2A receptior partial agonist d‐lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), and the protection of same by the serotonin 2A/2C receptor antagonist MDL 11,939
Brian D. Armstrong, Elena Paik, Seririthanar Chhith, Vincent Lelievre, James A. Waschek, Sherrel G. Howard
Neuroscience Research Communications September 1, 2004 DOI: 10.1002/nrc.20023 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Rats |
| Interventions | MDMA LSD MDL 11 939 |
| Topics | LSD MDMA Serotonin |
| Key findings | LSD dose-dependently increased MDMA-induced loss of serotonin transporters, while MDL 11,939 attenuated it, indicating that 5-HT2A/2C receptors are involved in MDMA-induced neurotoxicity. |
Abstract
AbstractTo elucidate the role of the serotonin (5‐HT)2A/2C receptors in 3,4‐methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)‐induced neurotoxicity, MDMA was administered to rats and the presence of the serotonin transporter (5‐HTT) was assessed at the protein level with immunohistochemistry (IHC), and the RNA level with a Northern blotting technique. d‐lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and MDL 11,939 were given in conjunction with MDMA in order to assess the importance of 5‐HT receptors in MDMA‐induced neurotoxicity. The hypothesis is that the MDMA + LSD‐treated animals should have more neurotoxicity as measured by loss of 5‐HTTs compared to the MDMA‐treated animals. Moreover, the loss of 5‐HTTs should be attenuated in animals given the combination of MDMA + MDL 11,939, as the latter drug is a selective 5‐HT2A/2C antagonist. The results showed that MDMA‐induced neurotoxicity was dose dependently increased by LSD. Moreover, the drug MDL 11,939 attenuated MDMA‐induced neurotoxicity, suggesting that 5‐HT2A/2C receptors are involved in MDMA‐induced neurotoxicity.