Drug and Alcohol Dependence
August 10, 2011
Ryan Vandrey, Kelly E Dunn, Jeannie A Fry et al.
Background: Synthetic cannabinoids are a rapidly emerging class of abused drugs. Synthetic cannabinoids are typically sold as "herbal blends" or "incense," commonly referred to as Spice products. No controlled human experiments have been conducted on the effects of Spice products or the synthetic cannabinoids they often contain. Methods: An internet-based survey study was conducted with adults...
Psychopharmacology
August 1, 2011
Adrian P. Burgess, Louise Venables, Helena Jones et al.
26 citations
Objectives Ecstasy is a recreational drug whose active ingredient, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), acts predominantly on the serotonergic system. Although MDMA is known to be neurotoxic in animals, the long-term effects of recreational Ecstasy use in humans remain controversial but one commonly reported consequence is mild cognitive impairment particularly affecting verbal episodic...
Oxford University Press eBooks
July 28, 2011
Jörg Fachner
7 citations
This chapter discusses the psychedelic effects of drugs (mainly cannabis) on the perception and performance of music, and in particular how such drugs influence time perception in the process of performance. It focuses both on scientific studies and on anecdotal evidence provided by musicians and observers of musicians using drugs. Most of the material relates to developments in the American...
Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience
July 22, 2011
C. Zanettini, Leigh V Panlilio, M. Aliczki et al.
Cannabis has long been known to produce cognitive and emotional effects. Research has shown that cannabinoid drugs produce these effects by driving the brain’s endogenous cannabinoid system and that this system plays a modulatory role in many cognitive and emotional processes. This review focuses on the effects of endocannabinoid system modulation in animal models of cognition (learning and...
Addiction Biology
July 2011
Zuzana Justinova, Sergi Ferré, Godfrey H Redhi et al.
Several recent studies suggest functional and molecular interactions between striatal adenosine A(2A) and cannabinoid CB(1) receptors. Here, we demonstrate that A(2A) receptors selectively modulate reinforcing effects of cannabinoids. We studied effects of A(2A) receptor blockade on the reinforcing effects of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and the endogenous CB(1) receptor ligand anandamide...
Journal of basic and clinical physiology and pharmacology
June 17, 2011
Tatiana Bregman, Ester Fride
Substantial data have been accumulated regarding the molecular basis of cystic fibrosis (CF) pathogenesis, whereas the influence of biochemical impairments on brain processes has been the focus of much less attention. We have studied some behavioral parameters, such as motor activity and anxiety level, in a mice model of CF. We have assumed that functioning of the endocannabinoid system could...
The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology
June 2011
Aurelie A Boucher, Glenn E. Hunt, Jacques Micheau et al.
Cannabis increases the risk of schizophrenia in genetically vulnerable individuals. In this study we aim to show that the schizophrenia susceptibility gene neuregulin 1 (Nrg1) modulates the development of tolerance to cannabinoids in mice. Nrg1 heterozygous (HET) and wild-type (WT) mice were treated daily for 15 d with the synthetic analogue of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol, CP55,940 (0.4 mg/kg). We...
Experimental Neurology
June 2011
Laxmikant S Deshpande, Robert E Blair, Robert J DeLorenzo
Developing cannabinoid-based medication along with marijuana's recreational use makes it important to investigate molecular adaptations the endocannabinoid system undergoes following prolonged use and withdrawal. Repeated cannabinoid administration results in development of tolerance and produces withdrawal symptoms that may include seizures. Here we employed electrophysiological and...
Psychopharmacology
June 2011
Florentia Hadjiefthyvoulou, John E. Fisk, Catharine Montgomery et al.
Prospective memory (PM) deficits in recreational drug users have been documented in recent years. However, the assessment of PM has largely been restricted to self-reported measures that fail to capture the distinction between event-based and time-based PM. The aim of the present study is to address this limitation. Extending our previous research, we augmented the range laboratory measures of...
Human Psychopharmacology Clinical and Experimental
June 1, 2011
John E. Fisk, Catharine Montgomery, Florentia Hadjiefthyvoulou
13 citations
OBJECTIVE: Previous research suggests that ecstasy users are impaired in processing visuospatial information. However, for the most part, the deficits observed appear to involve the recall and recognition of complex visual and geometric patterns. The present research sought to determine whether ecstasy use was associated with deficits in serial spatial recall and visuospatial working memory...