+/-3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is a chemical derivative of amphetamine that has become a popular drug of abuse and has been shown to deplete serotonin in the brains of users and animals exposed to it. To date, most studies have investigated the effects of MDMA on adult animals. With a majority of users of MDMA being young adults, the chances of the users becoming pregnant and...
In monkeys, elevating ambient temperature has been shown to increase sensitivity to 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) reinforcement. Earlier rodent studies have shown that elevations in thyroid levels (hyperthyroidism) parallel changes in elevating the ambient temperature on MDMA-induced thermogenesis, but the interaction has not been examined in monkeys. This study was designed to...
(+/-)-3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) is often taken recreationally with ethanol (EtOH). In rats, EtOH may potentiate MDMA-induced hyperactivity, but attenuate hyperthermia. Experiment 1 compared the interactions between EtOH (1.5 g/kg) and MDMA (6.6 mg/kg) with EtOH + cocaine (COCA; 10 mg/kg) and EtOH + amphetamine (AMPH; 1 mg/kg) on locomotor activity and thermoregulation....
3,4‐Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is an amphetamine derivative with increasingly widespread abuse. MDMA has been difficult to classify as a stimulant or hallucinogen because it shares effects with both drug classes. Furthermore, racemic MDMA is composed of two isomers that vary in terms of behavioral effects rather than simple potency differences. Specifically, the R(−) isomer of MDMA...
Previously it has been shown that MDMA causes memory impairment during daytime testing. However, MDMA is usually taken in the evening or during the night. In addition, it is known that sleep deprivation also causes memory impairment. The present study aimed to assess whether evening doses of MDMA added to, or interacted with the memory impairment due to sleep deprivation. Fourteen healthy...
Co-administration of MDMA and ethanol did not exacerbate the effects of either drug alone. Although the impairment of performance by all drug conditions was relatively moderate, all induced significant impairment of cognitive function.
Background: Ecstasy use has increasingly become popular among young adults, many of whom view it as a safe drug with no or limited negative social and health consequences. In this paper, we explore the perceptions of ecstasy users about its recreational use as well as regarding the normalisation of use. Methods: The study participants were recruited using targeted and theoretical sampling. To...
NephrologyFebruary 2008Milica Ninković, Vesna Selaković, Mirjana Dukić et al.
The mechanism of MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine)-induced toxicity is believed to be, in part, due to enhanced oxidative stress. As MDMA is eliminated via the kidney, the aim of this study was to investigate whether MDMA created conditions of oxidative stress within rat kidney. Adult male Wistar rats were divided into three groups, control treatment (water), acute MDMA administration...
Ecstasy (3,4 methylenedioxymethamphetamine, or MDMA) is a recreational drug widely used among young people in discos or rave parties (1,2). MDMA is taken because it gives a feeling of euphoria, enhances energy and sociability, and heightens sensations and sexual arousal. However, several side effects have been described: headache, nausea, anorexia, xerostomia, insomnia, myalgia, trismus, and...
The chiral nature of the MDMA molecule gives rise to two enantiomers, each of which is biologically active. This review attempts to cover the author's research into the in vivo effects of MDMA and its enantiomers, as well as other relevant publications which pertain to this topic. No particular differences between the capacities of racemic MDMA and its enantiomers to maintain behavior were...
3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), more commonly known as 'ecstasy' or XTC, is frequently used by young adults in the major cities. Therefore, it is likely that dentists might be confronted with individuals who use ecstasy. This review describes systemic and oral effects of ecstasy. Life-threatening complications include hyperthermia, hyponatraemia and liver failure. In addition,...
There is important preclinical evidence of long lasting neurotoxic and selective effects of ecstasy MDMA on serotonin systems in non-human primates. In humans long-term recreational use of ecstasy has been mainly associated with learning and memory impairments. The aim of the present study was to investigate the neuropsychological profile associated with ecstasy use within recreational polydrug...
Human MDMA (R,S-3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine) users display selective cognitive deficits after acute MDMA exposure, frequently attributed to serotonin deficits. We postulated that MDMA will compromize executive function in primates and that an inhibitor of the serotonin transporter (SERT) and the norepinephrine transporter (NET) but not the dopamine (DAT) transporter, will prevent...
Although serotonin (5-HT) can interact with dopamine (DA) systems to modulate the subjective and reinforcing effects of psychostimulants such as cocaine and 3,4-methyldioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy), the long-term effects of exposure to psychostimulants on brain 5-HT systems are not well characterized. The present study assessed 5-HT transporter (SERT) availability using positron emission...
3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) is a known neurotoxin in animals. This review discusses the history, pattern of use, pharmacology, acute and long-term effects of MDMA. Emphasis is given to the concern that MDMA may induce long-term cognitive and psychiatric effects. MDMA is an illegal substance, and investigations of the effects of exposure in human beings have limitations and...
This study examined the association of ecstasy (methylenedioxy-methylamphethamine) use with psychopathology among young, low-income females who sought care at university family planning clinics in Texas between December 2001 and May 2003. Participants reported drug use history and eight problem behavior syndromes by using the Young Adult Self-Report. The prevalence of ecstasy use was...
Introduction Oxidative stress and oxygen free radicals are thought to play an important role in acute effects of a number of neurotoxic processes. 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy), a ring substituted amphetamine derivate, has attracted a great deal of media attention in recent years due to its widespread abuse as recreational drug by the young generation. The aim of the present...
3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) is frequently used in hot environments, such as rave parties. Studies in laboratory animals have shown that ambient temperature can alter the behavioral and neurochemical effects of MDMA. To examine the influence of ambient temperature on the relative reinforcing strength of MDMA and reinstatement of behavior previously maintained by MDMA is the...
Psychostimulants including amphetamines and cocaine, opioids including morphine, and some recreational drugs share the ability to cause drug dependence and addiction. Although these drugs of abuse primarily act on distinct molecular targets, such as monoamine transporters or receptors, they finally converge to common neural pathways. Several lines of evidence suggest that their chronic...
<i>Background/Aims:</i> The present study is the first to prospectively compare a group of recreational Ecstasy users when dance clubbing on 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and when clubbing during abstinence from Ecstasy/MDMA. <i>Methods:</i> Twelve normal healthy volunteers (mean age = 23.2 years) were assessed at a Saturday night dance club under self-administered MDMA. On the other...