To determine the characteristics of pregnant women who use Ecstasy (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, MDMA), and to identify reproductive risk factors associated with this group of women. Prospective, observational study. Pregnant women who have contacted the Motherisk Alcohol and Substance Use Helpline at The Hospital for Sick Children, in Toronto, about exposure to drugs, chemicals, infectio...

Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is a mood-altering, legally restricted drug that has been reported to inhibit glutamate-evoked firing of cells in the nucleus accumbens. This study used extracellular recording combined with microiontophoresis to examine whether the inhibitory effect of MDMA on neuronal firing in the nucleus accumbens is mediated by serotonin and/or dopamine. Serotonin and s...

l-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (l-DOPA) is the most effective treatment for Parkinson's disease, but long-term l-DOPA administration is marred by the emergence of motor complications, namely, dyskinesia and a shortening of antiparkinsonian benefit (wearing-OFF). 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is unique in that it exerts antidyskinetic effects and may enhance antiparkinsonian actions of ...

"Ecstasy" [3,4-methylenedioxymetamphetamine (MDMA)] is of considerable interest in light of its prosocial properties and risks associated with widespread recreational use. Recently, it was found to bind trace amine-1 receptors (TA(1)Rs), which modulate dopaminergic transmission. Accordingly, using mice genetically deprived of TA(1)R (TA(1)-KO), we explored their significance to the actions of M...

Introduction: Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mental illness caused by exposure to traumatic event. The current treatment includes trauma-focused psychotherapy along with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI). It estimated that for about 40-60% of patients it does not bring the desired improvement, which prompted scientists look new methods pharmacotherapy. most promising co...

BACKGROUND: The compound 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is a potent monoamine releaser that produces an acute euphoria in most individuals. METHODS: In a double-blind, placebo-controlled, balanced-order study, MDMA was orally administered to 25 physically and mentally healthy individuals. Arterial spin labeling and seed-based resting state functional connectivity (RSFC) were used to p...

The popular recreational drug, (+/-)3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA; 'Ecstasy') is a potent and selective brain serotonin (5-HT) neurotoxin in animals. MDMA-induced 5-HT neurotoxicity can be demonstrated using a variety of neurochemical, neuroanatomical and, more recently, functional measures of 5-HT neurons. Although the neurotoxic effects of MDMA in animals are widely accepted, the r...

Psychiatrists and psychotherapists in the US (1970s to 1985) and Switzerland (1988-1993) used MDMA legally as a prescription drug, to enhance the effectiveness of psychotherapy. Early reports suggest that it is useful in treating trauma-related disorders. Recently, the first completed pilot study of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD yielded encouraging results. Designed to test the safety an...

The effects of MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine) on the activity of serotonin (5-HT)-containing dorsal raphe neurons were characterized using extracellular single-unit recording and microdialysis techniques in the in vitro midbrain slice preparation. Addition of (+)-MDMA, (-)-MDMA or p-chloroamphetamine (PCA) to the superfusate (final concentration 3-100 microM) produced a concentration-...

RATIONALE Emergency Department visits and fatalities in which (+/-)3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) or (+)methamphetamine (METH) are involved frequently feature unregulated hyperthermia. MDMA and METH significantly elevate body temperature in multiple laboratory species and, most importantly, can also produce unregulated and threatening hyperthermia in nonhuman primates. A majority of p...