Treating people with alcohol use disorder has been an important target area for psychedelic research – both in the first studies of the 1950s and during the Psychedelic Renaissance of the last 10 years. To date, most studies have looked at the classical psychedelic drugs as adjuncts to psychotherapy; with attention paid to the psychospiritual aspect of the experience as a central therapeutic...
European PsychiatryApril 1, 2017Amira Trabsa, E. Monteagudo, D.d. Mariona et al.2 citations
Introduction Although psychoactive substances has a long history in recreational settings, research on its composition has focused only on tablets, crystal and powder, even though new formulation for new psychoactive substances are readily available for users. Objectives To describe the presence of psychoactive substances and its characteristics in new formulations which had not previously been...
NeuropharmacologyMarch 16, 2017Mercedes Pérez-Hernández, María Encarnación Fernández-Valle, Ana Rubio-Araiz et al.
The recreational drug of abuse, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) disrupts blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity in rats through an early P2X7 receptor-mediated event which induces MMP-9 activity. Increased BBB permeability often causes plasma proteins and water to access cerebral tissue leading to vasogenic edema formation. The current study was performed to examine the effect of...
In vitro studies showed that CYP2C19, CYP2B6, and CYP1A2 contribute to the metabolism of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) to 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA). However, the role of genetic polymorphisms in CYP2C19, CYP2B6, and CYP1A2 in the metabolism of MDMA in humans is unknown. The effects of genetic variants in these CYP enzymes on the pharmacokinetics and...
Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is an amphetamine-derived psychostimulant, usually known as "ecstasy." The long-term neuropsychological effects of MDMA are examined in several studies with conflicting results. The most common findings reported are depression, anxiety, and memory and attention deficits. In addition to acute psychotic reactions observed after MDMA use, serotonergic and...
3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA; ecstasy) is being investigated in MDMA-assisted psychotherapy. The present study characterized the safety pharmacology of single-dose administrations of MDMA (75 or 125 mg) using data from nine double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover studies performed in the same laboratory in a total of 166 healthy subjects. The duration of the subjective effects...
The rise in popularity of substituted methcathinones (aka “bath salts”) has increased the focus on their neurotoxic effects. Two commonly abused methcathinones, 3,4-methylenedioxymethcathinone (methylone, MDMC) and 3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV), are often concomitantly ingested with the illicit drug 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). To examine potential neurotoxic effects of...
Adverse life experiences such as social stress may make an individual more vulnerable to drug addiction and mental disorders associated with drug consumption. The present work aimed to evaluate the effects of stress induced by acute social defeat combined with the administration of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) on depression-like behaviour, memory function and motor response to drug...
Recent work with noninvasive human brain imaging has started to investigate the effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) on large-scale patterns of brain activity. MDMA, a potent monoamine-releaser with particularly pronounced serotonin- releasing properties, has unique subjective effects that include: marked positive mood, pleasant/unusual bodily sensations and pro-social, empathic...
Rationale: Repeated exposure to ±3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) produces sensitization to MDMA-produced hyperactivity, but the mechanisms underlying the development of this sensitized response or the relationship to the reinforcing effects of MDMA is unknown. Objectives: This study determined the effect of a sensitizing regimen of MDMA exposure on the acquisition of MDMA...
Drug testing is a harm reduction strategy that has been adopted by certain countries in Europe. Drug users are able to hand in their drugs voluntarily for chemical analysis of composition and dose. Drug users will be alerted about dangerous test results by the drug testing systems directly and through warning campaigns. An international collaborative effort was launched to combine data of drug...
Over the past decade, monitoring systems have identified the rapid emergence of new psychoactive substances (NPS). While the use of many NPS is minimal and transitory, little is known about which products have potential for capturing the attention of significant proportions of the drug consuming market. The aim of this study was to explore self-reported experiences of three commonly used NPS...
AbstractBackground:Tramadol is prone to be abused alone, or in combination with 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, Ecstasy). It was reported that 95% of people with a history of substance abuse in the United States used tramadol in 2004. According to the WHO report in 2016, there was a growing number of tramadol abusers alone or in combination with psychoactive substances such as MDMA in...
MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine or ‘ecstasy’) is well-known for its empathic and sociable effects (Bogt, Engels, Hibbel & Van Wel, 2002). Indeed, there is a body of work that discusses the role the drug plays in social bonding (Beck & Rosenbaum, 1998; Duff, 2008; Farrugia, 2015; Hinchliff, 2001; Solowij, Hall & Lee, 1992). However, there has been extremely limited research looking at...
he trend of drug use has changed tremendously in this millennium (Adnan et al., 2014). Over the past decade, opioids are among the primary drug of abuse in worldwide. However the trend towards using amphetamine-type stimulant (ATS) is notably increasing lately. Amphetamine-type stimulants are a group of drugs consisting mainly of amphetamine and metamphetamine; these include methcathinone,...
Molly has been the street name for powder or crystalline ecstasy (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine [MDMA]) in the United States since the early 2000s; however, few studies have examined Molly use or included Molly in the definition of ecstasy/MDMA. Prevalence of self-reported ecstasy use is being underreported on surveys due to the lack of inclusion of "Molly," although Molly is often so...
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...
The 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) is a popular recreational drug and a major source of substance abuse, which ultimately leads to sensations of well-being, elation and euphoria, moderate derealization/depersonalization, and cognitive disruptions, as well as intense sensory awareness. The mechanisms involved in memory impairment induced by MDMA are not completely understood....
A 20-year-old female presented with confusion, generalized tonic-clonic seizures, and severe hyponatremia after ingesting 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). Brain computed tomography (CT) demonstrated cerebral edema. Her hospital course was rapidly complicated by respiratory failure and shock requiring intubation and vasopressors. Refractory acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) was...
Background: 3,4- methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is a chemical derivative of amphetamine that can induce learning and memory impairment. Due to the effect of neurotrophins on memory and learning, the impact of MDMA was evaluated on the brain - derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), neurotrophin- 4 (NT-4), and tropomyosin- related kinase B (Trk- β) expression in the hippocampus. Methods: In...