This double-blind, placebo-controlled, within-subject study (n=17) found that MDMA-induced impairment of verbal memory (measured by the WLT) is mediated by the (serotonin) 5-HT2A receptor.
Abstract of Blockade of 5-HT 2 receptor selectively prevents MDMA-induced verbal memory impairment
“3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) or ‘ecstasy’ has been associated with memory deficits during abstinence and intoxication. The human neuropharmacology of MDMA-induced memory impairment is unknown. This study investigated the role of 5-HT2A and 5-HT1A receptors in MDMA-induced memory impairment. Ketanserin is a 5-HT2A receptor blocker and pindolol a 5-HT1A receptor blocker. It was hypothesized that pretreatment with ketanserin and pindolol would protect against MDMA-induced memory impairment. Subjects (N=17) participated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, within-subject design involving six experimental conditions consisting of pretreatment (T1) and treatment (T2). T1 preceded T2 by 30 min. T1–T2 combinations were: placebo–placebo, pindolol 20 mg–placebo, ketanserin 50 mg–placebo, placebo–MDMA 75 mg, pindolol 20 mg–MDMA 75 mg, and ketanserin 50 mg–MDMA 75 mg. Memory function was assessed at Tmax of MDMA by means of a word-learning task (WLT), a spatial memory task and a prospective memory task. MDMA significantly impaired performance in all memory tasks. Pretreatment with a 5-HT2A receptor blocker selectively interacted with subsequent MDMA treatment and prevented MDMA-induced impairment in the WLT, but not in the spatial and prospective memory task. Pretreatment with a 5-HT1A blocker did not affect MDMA-induced memory impairment in any of the tasks. Together, the results demonstrate that MDMA-induced impairment of verbal memory as measured in the WLT is mediated by 5-HT2A receptor stimulation.”
Authors: Janelle H. P. van Wel, Kim P. C. Kuypers , Eef L. Theunissen , Wendy M. Bosker, Katja Bakker & Johannes G. Ramaekers
Summary of Blockade of 5-HT 2 receptor selectively prevents MDMA-induced verbal memory impairment
3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is the primary psychoactive constituent in the popular party drug ecstasy. MDMA use has consistently been associated with learning and verbal memory deficits in recreational and abstinent users, yet the neuropharmacology of these deficits is still under debate.
Kuypers and Ramaekers found that memory performance was not directly affected by 5-HT synaptic availability in MDMA-intoxicated subjects, and that MDMA-induced memory impairment raises the question of whether 5-HT is a neurotransmitter involved in memory.
It is not clear whether 5-HT2A receptors mediate learning and memory processes through agonism, antagonism or inverse agonism, but a 5-HT2A receptor blockade improves learning and reverses poor memory consolidation conditions associated with, among others, dysfunctional serotonergic neurotransmission.
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Blockade of 5-HT 2 receptor selectively prevents MDMA-induced verbal memory impairment
https://doi.org/10.1038/npp.2011.80
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Cite this paper (APA)
Van Wel, J. H. P., Kuypers, K. P. C., Theunissen, E. L., Bosker, W. M., Bakker, K., & Ramaekers, J. G. (2011). Blockade of 5-HT2 receptor selectively prevents MDMA-induced verbal memory impairment. Neuropsychopharmacology, 36(9), 1932-1939.
Study details
Compounds studied
MDMA
Topics studied
Healthy Subjects
Study characteristics
Original
Placebo-Controlled
Active Placebo
Double-Blind
Within-Subject
Randomized
Participants
17
Humans
Institutes
Institutes associated with this publication
Maastricht UniversityMaastricht University is host to the psychopharmacology department (Psychopharmacology in Maastricht) where various researchers are investigating the effects of psychedelics.
Compound Details
The psychedelics given at which dose and how many times
MDMA 75 mg | 1x