Psychopharmacology
July 22, 2017
Kim P. C. Kuypers, Rafael de la Torre, Magı́ Farré et al.
24 citations
MDMA has been shown to induce feelings of sociability, a positive emotional bias and enhanced empathy. While previous research has used only visual emotional stimuli, communication entails more than that single dimension and it is known that auditory information is also crucial in this process. In addition, it is, however, unclear what the neurobiological mechanism underlying these MDMA effects...
Neuroimage
July 12, 2017
Candace R. Lewis, Katrin H. Preller, Rainer Kraehenmann et al.
105 citations
Psilocybin, the active compound in psychedelic mushrooms, is an agonist of various serotonin receptors. Seminal psilocybin positron emission tomography (PET) research suggested regional increases in glucose metabolism in frontal cortex (hyperfrontality). However, a recent arterial spin labeling (ASL) study suggests psilocybin may lead to hypo-perfusion in various brain regions. In this...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
July 11, 2017
Drew J. Puxty, Johannes G. Ramaekers, Rafael de la Torre et al.
33 citations
Previous research has shown that a single dose of MDMA induce a dissociative state, by elevating feelings of depersonalization and derealization. Typically, it is assumed that action on the 5-HT2A receptor is the mechanism underlying these psychedelic experiences. In addition, other studies have shown associations between dissociative states and biological parameters (heart rate, cortisol),...
Psychopharmacology
July 1, 2017
Rainer Kraehenmann, Dan Pokorný, Leonie Vollenweider et al.
Rationale Accumulating evidence indicates that the mixed serotonin and dopamine receptor agonist lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) induces an altered state of consciousness that resembles dreaming. Objectives This study aimed to test the hypotheses that LSD produces dreamlike waking imagery and that this imagery depends on 5-HT2A receptor activation and is related to subjective drug effects....
Frontiers in Pharmacology
June 28, 2017
Patrick C. Dolder, Edna Grünblatt, Felix Müller et al.
12 citations
Rationale Renewed interest has been seen in the use of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) in psychiatric research and practice. The repeated use of LSD leads to tolerance that is believed to result from serotonin (5-HT) 5-HT2A receptor downregulation. In rats, daily LSD administration for 4 days decreased frontal cortex 5-HT2A receptor binding. Additionally, a single dose of LSD acutely increased...
Neuropharmacology
June 2017
Alyssa F DeLarge, Laura L Erwin, Peter J Winsauer
Mephedrone (4-methylmethcathinone), a constituent of the recreational substances known as "bath salts", is a synthetic cathinone that can produce auditory and visual hallucinations, as well as problematic cardiovascular effects. This study compared the discriminative stimulus effects of mephedrone (0.32-10 mg/kg) with other prototypical drugs of abuse: cocaine (0.56-32 mg/kg), d-amphetamine...
Behavioural Pharmacology
June 1, 2017
Jeremy I Webster, David N. Harper, Susan Schenk
Studies that have attributed the discriminative stimulus effects of ±3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) to serotonergic mechanisms typically use a relatively low training dose of 1.5 mg/kg. The role of serotonin in the discriminative stimulus effects of higher doses of MDMA is, however, unknown. Separate groups of rats were trained to discriminate MDMA (1.5 or 3.0 mg/kg) from saline using...
Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
June 2017
Anders A. Jensen, John D. Mccorvy, Sebastian Leth-Petersen et al.
Therapeutic interest in augmentation of 5-hydroxytryptamine2A (5-HT2A) receptor signaling has been renewed by the effectiveness of psychedelic drugs in the treatment of various psychiatric conditions. In this study, we have further characterized the pharmacological properties of the recently developed 5-HT2 receptor agonist N-2-hydroxybenzyl)-2,5-dimethoxy-4-cyanophenylethylamine (25CN-NBOH)...
Neurochemistry International
May 2017
Linda D Mercer, Gavin C Higgins, Chew L Lau et al.
Toxicity of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) towards biogenic amine neurons is well documented and in primate brain predominantly affects serotonin (5-HT) neurons. MDMA induces damage of 5-HT axons and nerve fibres and intracytoplasmic inclusions. Whilst its pathobiology involves mitochondrially-mediated oxidative stress, we hypothesised MDMA possessed the capacity to activate...
The FASEB Journal
April 1, 2017
Melodi Ann Bowman, Melissa Vitela, W. Anthony Owens et al.
Twenty percent of adults are diagnosed with major depressive disorder, which is typically treated with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. However, this type of medication takes approximately six weeks to produce therapeutic effects. Recently, low doses of ketamine, a noncompetitive N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, have been shown to produce rapid and long‐lasting...