OPEN Foundation

D. Curry

Sensitization to the prosocial effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA).

March 25, 2019 / Anxiety disorders / PTSD, MDMA, Neuroscience, Other subjects, Papers, Phenomenology, Psychiatry, Psychology, Psychopharmacology, Psychotherapy, Publications / By / , , , , ,

Abstract

The recreational drug 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) has well documented prosocial effects and is currently under clinical investigation as a treatment for patients with PTSD, autism, and other conditions. Early clinical trials have found that MDMA-assisted therapy may have robust long-lasting therapeutic effects, yet the mechanism by which acute treatments produce these long-term effects is unclear. Sensitization to certain behavioral drug effects is a common rodent model used to assess long-lasting neurobiological adaptations induced by acute drug treatments. Nine independent experiments were undertaken to investigate if and how mice sensitize to the prosocial effects of MDMA. When treated with 7.8 mg/kg MDMA and paired every other day for a week, MDMA-induced social interaction increased precipitously across treatment sessions. This previously unreported phenomenon was investigated and found to be heavily influenced by a social context and 5-HT2AR activation. Social sensitization did not appear to develop if mice were administered MDMA in isolation, and pretreatment with MDL100907, a selective 5-HT2AR antagonist, inhibited the development of social sensitization. However, when MDL100907 was administered to mice that had already been sensitized, it did not attenuate social interaction, suggesting that 5-HT2AR activity may be necessary for the development of social sensitization but not the expression of MDMA-induced social behavior. Additional investigation is warranted to further explore the phenomenon of social sensitization and to determine the underlying neurobiological mechanisms.
Curry, D. W., Berro, L. F., Belkoff, A. R., Sulima, A., Rice, K. C., & Howell, L. L. (2019). Sensitization to the prosocial effects of 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). Neuropharmacology, 151, 13-20., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropharm.2019.03.017
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Separating the agony from ecstasy: R(-)-3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine has prosocial and therapeutic-like effects without signs of neurotoxicity in mice

October 6, 2017 / Anxiety disorders / PTSD, MDMA, Papers, Psychiatry, Psychology, Psychopharmacology, Psychotherapy, Publications / By / , , , ,

Abstract

S,R(+/-)-3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (SR-MDMA) is an amphetamine derivative with prosocial and putative therapeutic effects. Ongoing clinical trials are investigating it as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other conditions. However, its potential for adverse effects such as hyperthermia and neurotoxicity may limit its clinical viability. We investigated the hypothesis that one of the two enantiomers of SR-MDMA, R-MDMA, would retain the prosocial and therapeutic effects but with fewer adverse effects. Using male Swiss Webster and C57BL/6 mice, the prosocial effects of R-MDMA were measured using a social interaction test, and the therapeutic-like effects were assessed using a Pavlovian fear conditioning and extinction paradigm relevant to PTSD. Locomotor activity and body temperature were tracked after administration, and neurotoxicity was evaluated post-mortem. R-MDMA significantly increased murine social interaction and facilitated extinction of conditioned freezing. Yet, unlike racemic MDMA, it did not increase locomotor activity, produce signs of neurotoxicity, or increase body temperature. A key pharmacological difference between R-MDMA and racemic MDMA is that R-MDMA has much lower potency as a dopamine releaser. Pretreatment with a selective dopamine D1 receptor antagonist prevented SR-MDMA-induced hyperthermia, suggesting that differential dopamine signaling may explain some of the observed differences between the treatments. Together, these results indicate that the prosocial and therapeutic effects of SR-MDMA may be separable from the stimulant, thermogenic, and potential neurotoxic effects. To what extent these findings translate to humans will require further investigation, but these data suggest that R-MDMA could be a more viable therapeutic option for the treatment of PTSD and other disorders for which SR-MDMA is currently being investigated.
Curry, D. W., Young, M. B., Tran, A. N., Daoud, G. E., & Howell, L. L. (2018). Separating the agony from ecstasy: R (–)-3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine has prosocial and therapeutic-like effects without signs of neurotoxicity in mice. Neuropharmacology, 128, 196-206. 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2017.10.003
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30 April - Q&A with Rick Strassman

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