It has been suggested that autophagy plays pathogenetic roles in cerebral ischemia, brain trauma, and neurodegenerative disorders. 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA or ecstasy) is an illicit drug that causes long-term serotonergic neurotoxicity in the brain. Apoptosis and necrosis have been implicated in MDMA-induced neurotoxicity, but the role of autophagy in MDMA-elicited serotonergic t...

Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is a phenylethylamine with novel mood-altering properties in humans. MDMA shares the dopamine-releasing properties of amphetamine but has been found to be a more potent releaser of serotonin (5-HT). The present study undertook to determine the relative roles of dopamine and 5-HT release in MDMA-induced locomotor hyperactivity. S-(+)MDMA produced dose-depende...

3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, 'ecstasy') releases serotonin and norepinephrine. MDMA is reported to produce empathogenic and prosocial feelings. It is unknown whether MDMA in fact alters empathic concern and prosocial behavior. We investigated the acute effects of MDMA using the Multifaceted Empathy Test (MET), dynamic Face Emotion Recognition Task (FERT) and Social Value Orientation...

The drug 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is a serotonergic neurotoxicant that causes hyperthermia and depletion of serotonin (5-HT) and 5-hydroxy-indole-3-acetic acid (5-HIAA) in the central nervous system. Formation of neurotoxic metabolites of MDMA, e.g., 2,4,5-trihydroxy-methamphetamine and 2,4,5-trihydroxyamphetamine, involves hydroxyl and/or superoxide free radicals. The present s...

objective: ecstasy, also known as 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (mdma), is a psychoactive recreational hallucinogenic substance and a major worldwide recreational drug. there are neurotoxic effects observed in laboratory animals and humans following mdma use. mdma causes apoptosis in neurons of the central nervous system (cns). withdrawal signs are attenuated by treatment with the adenosin...

Introduction: The administration of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) or ecstasy causes memory impairment, whereas neurogenesis improves memory and learning. Hence, this study evaluated the effects of MDMA on neurogenesis in the hippocampus of male rats. Methods: Adult male Wistar rats received intraperitoneal (IP) injections of MDMA (10 mg/kg). We assessed nestin, sex-determining regio...

157 words Hyponatremia is a serious complication of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) use. We investigated potential mechanisms in two double-blind, placebocontrolled studies. In study 1, healthy drug-experienced volunteers received MDMA or placebo alone and in combination with the alpha-1 adrenergic inverse agonist prazosin, used as a positive control to release antidiuretic hormone (AD...

Autophagic (type II) cell death, characterized by the massive accumulation of autophagic vacuoles in the cytoplasm of cells, has been suggested to play pathogenetic roles in cerebral ischemia, brain trauma, and neurodegenerative disorders. 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA or ecstasy) is an illicit drug causing long-term neurotoxicity in the brain. Apoptotic (type I) and necrotic (type II...

The serotonergic system appears crucial for (±)-3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) reinforcing properties. Current evidence indicates that serotonin 5-HT2A receptors (5-HT2ARs) modulate mesolimbic dopamine (DA) activity and several behavioural responses related to the addictive properties of psychostimulants. This study evaluated the role of 5-HT2ARs in MDMA-induced reinforcement and hype...

3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) is a synthetic recreational drug of abuse that produces long-term toxicity associated with the degeneration of serotonergic nerve terminals. In various animal models, direct administration of MDMA into the brain fails to reproduce the serotonergic neurotoxicity, implying a requirement for the systemic metabolism and bioactivation of MDMA. Catech...