Effect of ambient temperature on hyperthermia and hyperkinesis induced by 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA or "ecstasy") in rats.
Psychopharmacology April 1994 DOI: 10.1007/bf02249342 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Rats |
| Intervention | 3 |
| Dose | 5.0 or 7.5 mg/kg |
| Duration | 24 h prior temperature exposure in experiment 1; 90-min cool exposure commencing 30 min after injection in experiment 2 |
| Topics | MDMA |
| Key findings | MDMA (5.0 or 7.5 mg/kg) produced hyperthermia in rats at 24 degrees C but hypothermia in rats kept at 11 degrees C for 24 hours before injection, while hyperkinesis occurred at both temperatures. A brief 90-minute exposure to 11 degrees C starting 30 minutes after injection significantly attenuated MDMA-induced hyperthermia without affecting hyperkinesis. |
Abstract
A stress-free, biotelemetric monitoring technique was used to investigate the effects of ambient temperature (Ta) on the hyperthermic and hyperkinetic effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine. In the first experiment a single injection of 5.0 or 7.5 mg/kg MDMA produced hyperthermia in rats maintained at a Ta of 24 degrees C but hypothermia in rats maintained at a Ta of 11 degrees C for 24 h prior to the injection. In contrast, hyperkinesis was induced at both Tas. In the second experiment, the effects of acute MDMA administration was compared in rats maintained at a standard Ta of 24 degrees C and in rats which were placed in a cool (11 degrees C) room for a brief (90-min) period commencing 30 min after the injection. The brief exposure to the cool environment produced significant attenuation of MDMA-induced hyperthermia but did not affect the magnitude of hyperkinesis. The implications of the results for the understanding of the thermotoxic effects of MDMA in human drug users are discussed.