The Mediating Role of A2A Adenosine Receptors in the Mitochondrial Pathway of Apoptotic Hippocampal Cell Death, Following the Administration of MDMA in Rat.
Masoomeh Bakhshayesh, Fereshteh Golab, Fatemeh Kermanian, Mehdi Mehdizadeh, Amir Reza Katebi, Mansooreh Soleimani, Farzaneh Mohammadzadeh, Ronak Shabani, Elham Movahed, Majid Katebi
Basic and clinical neuroscience 2017 DOI: 10.18869/nirp.bcn.8.4.317 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Controlled experimental animal study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 40 |
| Population | Male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 200-250 g |
| Interventions | MDMA dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) |
| Duration | Drugs administered intraperitoneally once daily for 7 days |
| Measures | TUNEL assay, Western blotting for bax and bcl-2 |
| Topics | MDMA |
| Keywords | Adenosine receptor Ecstasy Or MDMA Neurotoxicity |
| Key findings | Coadministering MDMA with the adenosine A2A receptor agonist CGS 21680 reduced bax expression and prevented hippocampal cell apoptosis, whereas coadministering MDMA with the A2A receptor antagonist SCH 58261 increased bax expression and the frequency of hippocampal apoptosis. The authors conclude that CGS given with MDMA decreased the common side effects associated with MDMA. |
Abstract
The 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) is a popular recreational drug and a major source of substance abuse, which ultimately leads to sensations of well-being, elation and euphoria, moderate derealization/depersonalization, and cognitive disruptions, as well as intense sensory awareness. The mechanisms involved in memory impairment induced by MDMA are not completely understood. The current study used 40 Sprague-Dawley rats, weighted 200 to 250 g. Experiments were performed in four groups, each containing 10 rats. The first group of rats was used as the control, treated with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). The second group was treated with MDMA. The third group was treated with MDMA and CGS (the adenosine A2A receptor agonist, 2-[p-(2-carboxyethyl) phenethylamino]-5'-N-ethylcarboxamidoadenosine) (CGS 21680) and the fourth group was treated with MDMA and SCH (the A2A receptor antagonist [7-(2-phenylethyl)-5-amino-2-(2-furyl-) pyrazolo-[4, 3-e]-1, 2, 4 triazolo [1,5-] pyrimidine]) (SCH 58261). The drugs in all groups were administrated intraperitoneally (i.p.) once a day for 7 days. In 5 rats of each group, following perfusion, samples were taken from hippocampi to investigate apoptosis. Accordingly, the samples were stained using the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) assay kit, and studied by light microscopy. In other rats, fresh tissue was also removed to study the expression of bax and bcl-2 by Western blotting technique. It was observed that the coadministration of MDMA with CGS reduced bax expression and prevented apoptosis of hippocampal cells. The coadministration of MDMA and SCH increased bax expression, and also increased the frequency of hippocampal cell apoptosis. The results of the current study showed that administration of CGS with MDMA decreased the common side effects associated with MDMA.
Comparable studies
Other preclinical and animal studies on MDMA, most cited first.
Citations in the library
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and 7 more in the library