Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
June 1, 2004
Robert G. Carlson, Rüssel S. Falck, Jill A. McCaughan et al.
49 citations
In the past several years, the use of MDMA (Ecstasy) has increased substantially in the United States and in many countries around the world. Although this increase has been associated with the dance club and rave scenes, Ecstasy use has expanded into new settings. At the same time, the diversity of people using the drug has also grown. Given the increasing, although unclear, evidence that MDMA...
Neuroscience Letters
May 13, 2004
Marie-Louise Sveen, Gitte M. Knudsen, Susana Aznar
MDMA (3,4 Methylenedioxy-methamphetamine) binds and blocks the presynaptic serotonin reuptake transporters and postsynaptic serotonin 5-HT2A receptors, with highest affinity for the first. Whether 5-HT2A receptor density decreases due to MDMA's direct effect on postsynaptic serotonin receptors is at present not known. This study analyzes whether direct stimulation of the postsynaptic 5-HT2A...
Human Psychopharmacology: Clinical and Experimental
May 5, 2004
Michelle Wareing, John E. Fisk, Philip N. Murphy et al.
76 citations
Abstract Previous research suggests that MDMA users are impaired in various aspects of cognitive functioning, however, it remains unclear whether they might experience deficits in established measures of verbal working memory functioning. In the present study current and previous MDMA users were compared with non‐users on verbal working memory measures including reading and computation span....
Psychopharmacology
May 2004
Karsten Heekeren, Jörg Daumann, Mark A. Geyer et al.
3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) is neurotoxic upon central serotonin systems in experimental animals and probably also in humans. Serotonin is involved in the habituation, sensitization and prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the startle reflex. To study the plasticity of startle reflex in currently abstinent MDMA users. Electromyographic responses to acoustic startle stimuli (pulse...
Psychopharmacology
May 2004
Thomas J R Beveridge, Annis O. Mechan, Marie Sprakes et al.
3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) administration to rats produces an acute hyperthermic response and induces localised neuronal activation, which can be visualised via expression of immediate-early genes. The pharmacological and anatomical basis of these effects are unclear. At high doses, MDMA also causes selective neurotoxicity at serotonergic nerve terminals. We investigated the...
Psychopharmacology
May 2004
M Farré, Rafael de la Torre, Brian O Mathúna et al.
3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, "ecstasy") is increasingly used by young people for its euphoric and empathic effects. MDMA presents non-linear pharmacokinetics, probably by inhibition of cytochrome P450 isoform 2D6. Users are known to often take more than one dose per session. This practice could have serious implications for the toxicity of MDMA. To evaluate the pharmacological...
Nature
May 1, 2004
Psychedelic drugs: the ups and downs of ecstasy.
Psychopharmacology
May 2004
Fabrizio Schifano
The issue of ecstasy-related fatalities has extensively attracted the attention of both the media and the general public, but less so of the scientific literature. The aim of the present review is to focus on the epidemiological, clinical and pharmacological issues related to ecstasy fatalities. Possibly due to a number of different reasons, the rates of ecstasy-related deaths seem to have...
Psychopharmacology
May 2004
Jonathan P. Roiser, Barbara J. Sahakian
3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA or "ecstasy") causes serotonin neuron damage in laboratory animals. The serotonin system is known to be important in the regulation of mood. Previous research has shown that MDMA users score higher on self-report ratings of depression than controls. However, MDMA users commonly take other illicit substances and many studies do not fully control for...
Neuropsychopharmacology
May 2004
Boris B. Quednow, Kai‐uwe Kühn, Klaus Hoenig et al.
Chronic administration of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is associated with long-term depletion of serotonin (5-HT) and loss of 5-HT axons in the brains of rodents and nonhuman primates. Despite the broad database concerning the selective serotonergic neurotoxicity of recreational MDMA consumption by humans, controversy still exists with respect to the question of whether the...