British Journal of Urology
August 1, 2008
Peggy Chu, Wai‐kit Ma, Simon Chun‐wing Wong et al.
363 citations
OBJECTIVE: To report the clinical spectrum seen in young abusers of street-ketamine (regular recreational abusers of street-ketamine, for its hallucinogenic effects) in Hong Kong, presenting with significant lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) but with no evidence of bacterial infection. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analysed the clinical presentations, pelvic pain and...
The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology
July 9, 2008
Thibault Renoir, Eleni Païzanis, Malika El Yacoubi et al.
58 citations
Although numerous studies investigated the mechanisms underlying 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-induced neurotoxicity, little is known about its long-term functional consequences on 5-HT neurotransmission in mice. This led us to evaluate the delayed effects of MDMA exposure on the 5-HT system, using in-vitro and in-vivo approaches in both 5-HTT wild-type and knock-out mice. Acute MDMA...
Brain Research
July 7, 2008
Stephen Grossberg, Massimiliano Versace
This article develops the Synchronous Matching Adaptive Resonance Theory (SMART) neural model to explain how the brain may coordinate multiple levels of thalamocortical and corticocortical processing to rapidly learn, and stably remember, important information about a changing world. The model clarifies how bottom-up and top-down processes work together to realize this goal, notably how...
Drug and Alcohol Dependence
July 1, 2008
Karen L. Hanson, Mónica Luciana, Kristin Sullwold
The recreational drug, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA; 'Ecstasy'), is a synthetic amphetamine derivative and a serotonin neurotoxin. MDMA use is associated with cognitive dysfunction and impulsivity, but since polydrug abuse is common among users it is difficult to attribute these problems specifically to MDMA. Moreover, few studies have examined reward-related cognitive processes. Our...
Psychopharmacology
July 2008
Lance R Mcmahon, Brett C Ginsburg, R J Lamb
A variety of behavioral procedures have been developed to assess cannabinoid activity in mice; however, the feasibility of establishing Delta(9)-THC as a discriminative stimulus in mice has not been documented. One goal was to establish Delta(9)-THC as a discriminative stimulus in mice; after having done so, another goal was to examine the in vivo mechanism of action of Delta(9)-THC with other...
Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology
July 1, 2008
Julien Fonsart, Marie-Claude Menet, Xavier Declèves et al.
The use of the amphetamine derivative 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) has been associated with unexplained deaths. Male humans and rodents are more sensitive to acute toxicity than are females, including a potentially lethal hyperthermia. MDMA is highly metabolized to five main metabolites, by the enzymes CYP1A2 and CYP2D. The major metabolite in rats,...
Behavioural Pharmacology
July 2008
Matthew L Banks, Robert W Gould, Paul W Czoty et al.
Concurrent schedules of reinforcement are increasingly being used to investigate the reinforcing strength of abused drugs. A purported advantage of concurrent schedules is that the primary dependent measure, percentage of responses emitted on the drug-associated manipulandum, is independent of the rate-altering effects of drugs. Data supporting this hypothesis are, however, rarely presented,...
Planta Medica
July 1, 2008
Mario Marchi, Massimo Grilli, Elisa Neri et al.
Salvinorin-A is a component of Salvia divinorum , displaying psychoactive and hallucinogenic properties in humans. Recent literature suggests that this compound can act as a potent and selective opioid receptor agonist, having high affinity towards the K–opioid receptor subtype. The aim of our study was to investigate whether and to what extent this compound can alter the release of...
European Neuropsychopharmacology
July 1, 2008
Simret Beraki, Alexander Kuzmin, Fadao Tai et al.
The effect of phencyclidine (PCP), a non-competitive N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, was examined in the water maze, a spatial learning and memory task dependent on hippocampal functions. Male adult C57Bl/6J mice received daily (s.c.) injections of either saline or PCP (0.25-4.0 mg/kg) for 12 days. During the last 5 days, the injections were followed by water maze training....
Journal of Psychopharmacology
July 1, 2008
Mw Johnson, Wa Richards, Rr Griffiths
1,191 citations
There has recently been a renewal of human research with classical hallucinogens (psychedelics). This paper first briefly discusses the unique history of human hallucinogen research, and then reviews the risks of hallucinogen administration and safeguards for minimizing these risks. Although hallucinogens are relatively safe physiologically and are not considered drugs of dependence, their...