Addiction Research & Theory
June 1, 2005
Phil Dalgarno, David Shewan
54 citations
The central proposition of this article is that if people are thoughtful, well-prepared and aware of the means and best environments for using a particular drug, then the risks associated with the use of a particular drug – any drug – can be minimal. The types of drugs discussed in this context focus on those assumed to be the most ‘addictive’ – heroin and cocaine – to those less well-known but...
Brain Research
June 1, 2005
Susan Lautar, Camilo Rojas, Barbara S. Slusher et al.
23 citations
Dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP IV) is a ubiquitous membrane-bound enzyme that cleaves the two N-terminal amino acids from peptides with a proline or alanine residue in the second position from the amino end. Potential substrates for DPP IV include several neuropeptides, suggesting a role for DPP IV in neurological processes. We have developed a potent DPP IV inhibitor (IC50 = 30 nM),...
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
June 1, 2005
Dartiu Xavier Da Silveira, Charles S. Grob, Marlene Dobkin De Rios et al.
111 citations
Ayahuasca is believed to be harmless for those (including adolescents) drinking it within a religious setting. Nevertheless controlled studies on the mental/ psychiatric status of ritual hallucinogenic ayahuasca concoction consumers are still lacking. In this study, 40 adolescents from a Brazilian ayahuasca sect were compared with 40 controls matched on sex, age, and educational background for...
Psychopharmacology
May 2005
Styliani Vlachou, George G. Nomikos, George Panagis
Addictive drugs have a number of commonalities in animal behavioral models. They lower intracranial self-stimulation (ICSS) thresholds, support self-administration, and produce conditioned place preference (CPP). However, cannabinoids appear atypical as drugs of abuse, since there are controversial data in the literature concerning their reinforcing properties. The aim of the present study was...
The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine
April 2005
Michael P Collins, Lucia F Dunn
To analyze the relationship between a patient's "spontaneous recovery" from dermatomyositis and her practice of transcendental meditation and visual imagery without confounding effects of conventional therapies. Study of time-varying relationships between (1) measures of arm strength and skin condition (rash and pain) and (2) mind-body interventions-controlling for psychologic stress-in a...
Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
April 2005
Douglas C. Jones, Christine L. Duvauchelle, Aiko Ikegami et al.
The selective serotonergic neurotoxicity of 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA) and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) depends on their systemic metabolism. We have recently shown that inhibition of brain endothelial cell gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (gamma-GT) potentiates the neurotoxicity of both MDMA and MDA, indicating that metabolites that are substrates for this enzyme...
Consciousness and Cognition
March 2005
Bernard J. Baars
In humans, conscious perception and cognition depends upon the thalamocortical (T-C) complex, which supports perception, explicit cognition, memory, language, planning, and strategic control. When parts of the T-C system are damaged or stimulated, corresponding effects are found on conscious contents and state, as assessed by reliable reports. In contrast, large regions like cerebellum and...
Transcultural Psychiatry
March 1, 2005
Joop De Jong
Sleep paralysis is one of the lesser-known and more benign forms of parasomnias. The primary or idiopathic form, also called isolated sleep paralysis, is illustrated by showing how patients from different cultures weave the phenomenology of sleep paralysis into their clinical narratives. Clinical case examples are presented of patients from Guinea Bissau, the Netherlands, Morocco, and Surinam...
Transcultural Psychiatry
March 1, 2005
David J. Hufford
This article presents an overview of the sleep paralysis experience from both a cultural and a historical perspective. The robust, complex phenomenological pattern that represents the subjective experience of sleep paralysis is documented and illustrated. Examples are given showing that, for a majority of subjects, sleep paralysis is taken to be a kind of spiritual experience. This is, in part,...
Behavioural Pharmacology
March 1, 2005
V. Buben Kov, Martin Votava, J. Hora Ek et al.
38 citations
Sensorimotor gating is the ability of a weak sensory event to inhibit the motor response to an intense stimulus. Drugs that act as serotonin releasers, such as MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine), impair sensorimotor gating, which is measured as a prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the acoustic startle response. The first objective of the present study was to compare the effect of different...