According to a recent study by researchers at Vanderbilt University, the recreational drug MDMA, more popularly known as ‘ecstasy,’ produces long-term, toxic changes in the brain. According to Ronald Cowan, M.D., Ph.D., and associate professor of psychiatry at Vanderbilt, this ought to cause anyone who has faith in the therapeutic potential of ecstasy to proceed with extreme caution. While it is possible that it may have therapeutic potential, Cowan warns that we must first determine the precise dosage at which it becomes toxic, if it is even safe to use at all. Cowan says that his study suggests that the more the drug is used, the great the changes it produces in the brain. He also suggests that some people may be more genetically susceptible to its neurotoxic effects than others. The study went as follows:
In the current study, Cowan and colleagues used positron emission tomography (PET) imaging to examine the levels of serotonin-2A receptors in various brain regions, in females who had used Ecstasy (but not in the 90 days prior to imaging) and in females who had never used the drug. They limited their studies to females because previous work has shown gender-specific differences in serotonin receptor levels.
They found that Ecstasy users had increased levels of serotonin-2A receptors and that higher lifetime use of the drug (higher doses) correlated with higher serotonin receptor levels. The findings are consistent with some studies in animal models, with receptor levels increasing to compensate for the loss of serotonin, Cowan said.
Cowan and colleagues reported earlier this year that Ecstasy increased brain activation in three brain areas associated with visual processing, which suggested a loss in brain efficiency. Together, the two studies provide compelling evidence that Ecstasy causes lasting changes in brain serotonin function, Cowan said.
“It’s really critical to know whether or not this drug is causing long-term brain damage because millions of people are using it,” he said (Vanderilt University Medical Center, 2011)
Credit : Dr. Esha Kaul (Hematologist, Oncologist and Bone Marrow Transplant Specialist 12 Years Experience)
