Pharmaceuticals
July 5, 2011
Elena Puerta, Norberto Aguirre
6 citations
The amphetamine analogue 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ‘ecstasy’) is widely abused as a recreational drug due to its unique psychological effects. Of interest, MDMA causes long-lasting deficits in neurochemical and histological markers of the serotonergic neurons in the brain of different animal species. Such deficits include the decline in the activity of tryptophan hydroxylase in...
Neurology
July 4, 2011
Una D. Mccann, Francis P. Sgambati, Alan R. Schwartz et al.
1 citation
Background: Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, "ecstasy") is a popular recreational drug of abuse and a selective brain serotonin neurotoxin.Functional consequences of MDMA neurotoxicity have defied ready characterization.Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common form of sleep-disordered breathing in which brain serotonin dysfunction may play a role.The present study sought to determine...
Neuroscience Letters
July 1, 2011
Matthew A Schreiber, Steven L McIntire
Biogenic amine systems are damaged by amphetamine abuse and in Parkinson's disease. The mechanisms mediating this damage are of high importance because of the public health impact of these problems. Here we have taken advantage of the Caenorhabditis elegans nematode model system to investigate genetic modifiers of biogenic amine toxicity. In a forward genetic screen, we identified a mutant...
Vojnosanitetski Pregled
July 2011
Nadica S Marinković, Zivorad Malicevic, Jovan Dimitrijević
3,4-methylendioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, Ecstasy) is a psycho-stimulating agent. It is usually taken orally in the form of tablets. It is absorbed throught the gastrointestinal mucous membrane. Hyperthermia is the most prominent clinical sign of MDMA intake. The most prominent forensic finding of lethal MDMA poisoning is myocardial infarction and cerebrovascular bleeding. However, liver and...
Brain Research Bulletin
July 1, 2011
MDMA-induced c-Fos expression in oxytocin-containing neurons is blocked by pretreatment with the 5-HT-1A receptor antagonist WAY 100635.
Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
July 2011
Melanie Mueller, Amy K Goodwin, Nancy A Ator et al.
The baboon is potentially an attractive animal for modeling 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) effects in humans. Baboons self-administer MDMA, are susceptible to MDMA neurotoxicity, and are suitable for positron emission tomography, the method most often used to probe for MDMA neurotoxicity in humans. Because pharmacokinetic equivalence is a key feature of a good predictive animal model,...
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
July 1, 2011
Lwendo S. Moonzwe, Jean J. Schensul, Kristin M. Kostick
21 citations
This article examines the role of Ecstasy (MDMA or 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine) as a drug used for self-medication and coping with both short- and long-term negative life situations. We show that urban youth who do not have a specific diagnosed mental illness are more likely than those who have been diagnosed and have received treatment to use Ecstasy to cope with both situational stress...
Psychopharmacology
June 30, 2011
M. Kirkpatrick, Erik W. Gunderson, Audrey Y. Perez et al.
119 citations
Despite their chemical similarities, methamphetamine and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) produce differing neurochemical and behavioral responses in animals. In humans, individual studies of methamphetamine and MDMA indicate that the drugs engender overlapping and divergent effects; there are only limited data comparing the two drugs in the same individuals. This study examined the...
The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism
June 30, 2011
Linda D. Simmler, Cédric M. Hysek, Matthias E. Liechti
91 citations
Abstract Background: 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) misuse is associated with hyponatremia particularly in women. Hyponatremia is possibly due to inappropriate secretion of plasma arginine vasopressin (AVP). Objective: To assess whether MDMA increases plasma AVP and copeptin in healthy male and female subjects and whether effects depend on MDMA-induced release of serotonin...
Behavioural Pharmacology
June 29, 2011
María José Varela, José Brea, Marı́a Isabel Loza et al.
18 citations
The behavioral and neurochemical adaptations related to chronic 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) treatment are largely unknown. In this study, we assessed whether repeated administration of MDMA would induce (a) context-dependent locomotor sensitization in mice and (b) changes in serotonin 5-HT(2A) and dopamine D₂ receptor functionality as measured by [³⁵S]GTPγS binding. Mice were...