Effects of the phenethylamine derivatives, BL-3912, fenfluramine, and Sch-12679, in rats trained with LSD as a discriminative stimulus.
Psychopharmacology 1980 DOI: 10.1007/bf00432134 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Animal discrimination study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 6 |
| Population | Rats trained to discriminate LSD from saline |
| Interventions | LSD BL-3912 fenfluramine Sch-12679 BC-105 |
| Dose | 100 micrograms/kg LSD |
| Topics | LSD |
| Key points | BL-3912 fully substituted for LSD in LSD-trained rats, whereas fenfluramine and Sch-12679 produced only intermediate responding. BC-105 blocked the LSD-like effects of all three drugs. The authors conclude that drugs can substitute wholly or partly for LSD in rats, and that complete substitution does not necessarily imply hallucinogenic effects in humans. |
Abstract
Six rats were trained to discriminate the effects of LSD (100 micrograms/kg) and saline in a two-lever choice task. They were then tested with each of three phenethylamine derivatives, BL-3912 (2,5-dimethoxy-4-methyl-alpha-ethyl-phenethylamine), fenfluramine (N-ethyl-alpha-methyl-m-(trifluoro-methyl)phenethylamine), and Sch-12679 (N-methyl-1-phenyl-7,8-dimethoxy-2,3,4,5-tetra-hydro-3-benzazepine maleate). Fenfluramine and Sch-12679 yielded intermediate results, i.e., responding was not fully appropriate for either training condition while BL-3912 substituted completely for LSD. The LSD-like effects of each of the drugs were antagonized by pretreatment with BC-105, a serotonergic antagonist known to block the stimulus effects of indole and phenethylamine hallucinogens. The present data together with consideration of the known clinical effects of BL-3912, fenfluramine, and Sch-12679 are consistent with the following conclusions: (1) a variety of drugs may substitute in whole or in part for LSD in LSD-trained rats, and (2) even complete substitution of a drug for LSD in the rat is not necessarily associated with the production by that drug of hallucinations in man.
Comparable studies
Other preclinical and animal studies on LSD, most cited first.
Citations in the library
Cited by 20
- Differences Between the Mechanism of Action of MDMA, MBDB, and the Classic Hallucinogens. Identification of a New Therapeutic Class: Entactogens Journal of Psychoactive Drugs October 1, 1986
- Correlation between the potency of hallucinogens in the mouse head-twitch response assay and their behavioral and subjective effects in other species. Neuropharmacology May 1, 2020
- Lysergic acid diethylamide and [−]-2,5-dimethoxy-4-methylamphetamine increase extracellular glutamate in rat prefrontal cortex Brain Research August 27, 2004
- Pharmacological Mechanism of the Non-hallucinogenic 5-HT2A Agonist Ariadne and Analogs ACS Chemical Neuroscience December 15, 2022
- Entactogens: How the Name for a Novel Class of Psychoactive Agents Originated Frontiers in Psychiatry March 25, 2022
and 15 more in the library
Cites 5
- Role of serotonin in the discriminative stimulus properties of mescaline Pharmacology, Biochemistry, and Behavior May 1, 1975
- Mescaline and lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) as discriminative stimuli Psychopharmacology 1971
- DOET(2,5-Dimethoxy-4-Ethylamphetamine), a New Psychotropic Drug Archives of General Psychiatry 1971
- The effects of 2,5-dimethoxy-4-methylamphetamine (DOM), 2,5-dimethoxy-4-ethylamphetamine (DOET), d-amphetamine, and cocaine in rats trained with mescaline as a discriminative stimulus Psychopharmacology 1975
- The identification of LSD-like hallucinogens using the chronic spinal dog. Drug and Alcohol Dependence March 1, 1978