MDMA, Methylone, and MDPV: Drug-Induced Brain Hyperthermia and Its Modulation by Activity State and Environment.
Eugene A. Kiyatkin, Suelynn E Ren
Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences 2017 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2016_35 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Awake, freely moving rats |
| Interventions | MDMA MDPV methylone clozapine carvedilol |
| Topics | MDMA |
| Keywords | Animals Humans Rats Fever Propanolamines Methamphetamine N-methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine Pyrrolidines Carbazoles Clozapine Antipsychotic agents Vasodilator agents Body temperature Social behavior Interpersonal relations Environment Vasoconstriction Benzodioxoles Carvedilol Synthetic cathinone Drugs of abuse Brain metabolism Psychomotor stimulants MDMA Ecstasy Cerebral heat production Rave parties Drug-induced intoxication |
| Key findings | The authors argue that MDMA, MDPV, and methylone produce brain and body hyperthermia through drug-induced metabolic heat production in the brain and diminished heat dissipation from peripheral vasoconstriction, and that social interaction and warm ambient temperature alter these effects differently for each drug. In their recent experiments, the centrally acting antipsychotic clozapine was more effective than the peripherally acting vasodilator carvedilol at reversing MDMA-induced hyperthermia in brain and body. |
Abstract
Psychomotor stimulants are frequently used by humans to intensify the subjective experience of different types of social interactions. Since psychomotor stimulants enhance metabolism and increase body temperatures, their use under conditions of physiological activation and in warm humid environments could result in pathological hyperthermia, a life-threatening symptom of acute drug intoxication. Here, we will describe the brain hyperthermic effects of MDMA, MDPV, and methylone, three structurally related recreational drugs commonly used by young adults during raves and other forms of social gatherings. After a short introduction on brain temperature and basic mechanisms underlying its physiological fluctuations, we will consider how MDMA, MDPV, and methylone affect brain and body temperatures in awake freely moving rats. Here, we will discuss the role of drug-induced heat production in the brain due to metabolic brain activation and diminished heat dissipation due to peripheral vasoconstriction as two primary contributors to the hyperthermic effects of these drugs. Then, we will consider how the hyperthermic effects of these drugs are modulated under conditions that model human drug use (social interaction and warm ambient temperature). Since social interaction results in brain and body heat production, coupled with skin vasoconstriction that impairs heat loss to the external environment, these physiological changes interact with drug-induced changes in heat production and loss, resulting in distinct changes in the hyperthermic effects of each tested drug. Finally, we present our recent data, in which we compared the efficacy of different pharmacological strategies for reversing MDMA-induced hyperthermia in both the brain and body. Specifically, we demonstrate increased efficacy of the centrally acting atypical neuroleptic compound clozapine over the peripherally acting vasodilator drug, carvedilol. These data could be important for understanding the potential dangers of MDMA in humans and the development of pharmacological tools to alleviate drug-induced hyperthermia - potentially saving the lives of highly intoxicated individuals.
Comparable studies
Other preclinical and animal studies on MDMA, most cited first.
Citations in the library
Cited by 3
- Behavioural, Pharmacokinetic, Metabolic, and Hyperthermic Profile of 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) in the Wistar Rat Frontiers in Psychiatry April 24, 2018
- Naphyrone (naphthylpyrovalerone): Pharmacokinetics, behavioural effects and thermoregulation in Wistar rats Addiction Biology May 7, 2020
- MDMA-Associated Liver Toxicity: Pathophysiology, Management, and Current State of Knowledge. AACN advanced critical care 2019
Cites 17
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and 12 more in the library