Introduction
The current paper explores the neurobiology of ecstasy (MDMA) abuse and conducts an analysis of academic articles related to the topic. The theme of the study is relevant to the field of biological psychology because it concerns a widely used substance which significantly affects the well-being of people. Therefore, it is important to study MDMA thoroughly to take into consideration all aspects of its functioning. The search strategy used to locate peer-reviewed studies presented in the paper included using Capella Library’s native search engine Summon, which incorporates materials from different databases, including PubMed Central. Summon was chosen because it facilitates the search process by enabling the researcher to efficiently explore articles from numerous databases. The keywords used as part of the search included words such as neurobiology, ecstasy, MDMA, addiction, abuse, and methylenedioxymethamphetamine. Such keywords were chosen because they reflected the topic of the paper.
Article 1
García-Pardo, M. P., De la Rubia Ortí, J. E., & Aguilar Calpe, M. A. (2017). Differential effects of MDMA and cocaine on inhibitory avoidance and object recognition tests in rodents. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 146, 1–11.
Methods
The research method of study was a review which involved analyzing the main data presented in the literature of the past ten years concerning the impact of ecstasy and cocaine on object recognition and inhibitory avoidance tests in mice.
Hypothesis
The research question of the authors concerned the effects of psychostimulant abuse on memory impairments.
Key variables
The key variables in the articles analyzed during the review were the doses of MDMA and cocaine.
Support for Hypothesis
The researchers discovered that acute and continuous consumption of ecstasy led to impairment in the performance of the mice when solving the object recognition test and inhibitory avoidance test. Thus, the researchers were able to answer their research question and conclude that MDMA indeed had a negative effect on memory performance.
Safe & Ethical Treatment
The studies reviewed by the researchers were conducted in accordance with ethical principles.
Article 2
Lanteri, C., Doucet, E. L., Hernández Vallejo, S. J., Godeheu, G., Bobadilla, A.-C., Salomon, L., Lanfumey, L., &, Tassin, J. P. (2013). Repeated exposure to MDMA triggers long-term plasticity of noradrenergic and serotonergic neurons. Molecular Psychiatry, 19(7), 823–833.
Methods
The research method involved giving mice four consecutive injections of MDMA or saline in the cylindrical compartments either used for conducting microdialysis or monitoring locomotor activity. The researchers conducted several types of experiments, including behavioral, neuroendocrine, and molecular.
Hypothesis
The researchers hypothesized that regular use of ecstasy could promote adaptations in the neural and behavioral realms.
Key variables
The key variables in the experiment were the doses of MDMA administered to the mice.
Support for Hypothesis
Researchers identified evidence in support of their initial hypothesis. First of all, it was discovered that the administration of MDMA increased serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine levels in mice. Such a finding enabled them to conclude that the exposure to ecstasy caused the sensitization of noradrenergic and serotonergic neurons, which lasted for a long time and promoted behavioral sensitization. The results of the research allowed the researchers to prove that regular exposure to MDMA could cause strong behavioral and neural adaptations and to theorize that MDMA could have considerable addictive properties.
Safe & Ethical Treatment
The animal experiments in the study were conducted in accordance with the guidelines of the European Economic Community.
Article 3
Moreno-López, L., Stamatakis, E. A., Fernández-Serrano, M. J., Gómez-Río, M., Rodríguez-Fernández, A., Pérez-García, M., & Verdejo-García, A. (2012). Neural correlates of the severity of cocaine, heroin, alcohol, MDMA and cannabis use in polysubstance abusers: A resting-PET brain metabolism study. PloS One, 7(6), 1–6.
Methods
The research used a correlation type of analysis. The researchers analyzed how of consumption of ecstasy and other substances, including heroin and cocaine, correlated to brain metabolism in people who were polysubstance users.
Hypothesis
The researchers hypothesized that the use of MDMA and other substances would have an association with metabolism reduction in different brain regions, including the frontal, limbic, and cerebellar ones.
Key variables
The key variables of the study were different substances consumed by the participants, as well as the amount and duration of their use.
Support for Hypothesis
The researchers discovered that there was a negative correlation between the severity of MDMA use and brain metabolism in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and temporal cortex. The researcher also indicated that the aforementioned brain regions were associated with loss of self-control, conditioning, and stimulus-driven compulsive conduct. Thus, the initial hypothesis of the researchers was fully supported by the evidence found during the study.
Safe & Ethical Treatment
The research was conducted in a safe manner and in accordance with ethical principles.
Article 4
Squire, H., Youn, J., Ellenbroek, B. A., & Harper, D. N. (2020). The role of dopamine D1 receptors in MDMA-induced memory impairments. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 176, 1– 32.
Methods
The research method involved using rats which have a selective down-regulation in functional dopamine receptors, and training them on a spatial working memory T-maze task. After training, the rats were administered MDMA or saline fifteen minutes prior to testing on the task.
Hypothesis
The researchers hypothesized that the administration of ecstasy would lead to memory performance impairment due to dopamine receptors being overstimulated. Such a situation would increase rats’ perseverative responding when performing different memory tasks.
Key variables
The key variables in the research were the MDMA and saline doses.
Support for Hypothesis
The researchers conducted an experiment and discovered that rats exposed to overstimulation of dopamine receptors using MDMA displayed decreased accuracy when performing the task. Moreover, higher doses of MDMA caused rats to perform less accurately. Thus, the researchers proved their hypothesis that the abuse of MDMA can lead to considerable memory impairment.
Safe & Ethical Treatment
The research was conducted in accordance with ethical principles and was approved by the Victoria University of Wellington’s Animal Ethics Committee.
Article 5
Walpola, I., Nest, T., Roseman, L., Erritzoe, D., Feilding, A., Nutt, D., &, Carhart-Harris, R. (2017). Altered insula connectivity under MDMA. Neuropsychopharmacology, 42, 2152–2162.
Methods
The research method of the article included conducting an analysis of the previously collected functional magnetic resonance imaging data using a within-subjects, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled design.
Hypothesis
The authors hypothesized that the sensations in their bodies which people have after the administration of ecstasy could be linked to a dysregulation in interoceptive processing.
Key variables
The key variable was the amount of MDMA administered to participants.
Support for Hypothesis
The hypothesis of the researchers was supported by the fact that they discovered decreased connectivity between the right insula and salience network who took MDMA. Moreover, the decreased connectivity correlated with experiences of altered bodily sensations in participants who used MDMA. Additionally, the researchers also indicated that disintegration was determined to be the MDMA experience’s neurobiological signature. As a result, they managed to link the brain effect to altered bodily sensations, which are associated with insular functioning.
Safe & Ethical Treatment
The data used as part of the study was collected during previous studies, which were approved by several ethics committees.
Summary & Conclusions
The articles analyzed as part of the current paper provided a variety of information on the topic of the neurobiology of ecstasy (MDMA) abuse. It was discovered that the prolonged use of MDMA can cause memory impairment due to the overstimulation of dopamine receptors. Additionally, MDMA can cause problems with connectivity between the right insula and the salience network. Finally, the research showed that brain metabolism in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and temporal cortex was negatively impacted during the consumption of MDMA. Moreover, the larger the dose of the substance, the more severe the negative effect on the body. The articles utilized different methods, yet their key variables were mostly the same. All articles adhered to the ethical and safety considerations and were effective in analyzing their hypotheses. The method which I found most appropriate for the study I will propose in Unit 9 is the review article since it will allow me to incorporate a variety of sources on the topic.
References
García-Pardo, M. P., De la Rubia Ortí, J. E., & Aguilar Calpe, M. A. (2017). Differential effects of MDMA and cocaine on inhibitory avoidance and object recognition tests in rodents. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 146, 1–11.
Lanteri, C., Doucet, E. L., Hernández Vallejo, S. J., Godeheu, G., Bobadilla, A.-C., Salomon, L., Lanfumey, L., &, Tassin, J. P. (2013). Repeated exposure to MDMA triggers long-term plasticity of noradrenergic and serotonergic neurons. Molecular Psychiatry, 19(7), 823–833.
Moreno-López, L., Stamatakis, E. A., Fernández-Serrano, M. J., Gómez-Río, M., Rodríguez-Fernández, A., Pérez-García, M., & Verdejo-García, A. (2012). Neural correlates of the severity of cocaine, heroin, alcohol, MDMA and cannabis use in polysubstance abusers: A resting-PET brain metabolism study. PloS One, 7(6), 1–6.
Squire, H., Youn, J., Ellenbroek, B. A., & Harper, D. N. (2020). The role of dopamine D1 receptors in MDMA-induced memory impairments. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 176, 1– 32.
Walpola, I., Nest, T., Roseman, L., Erritzoe, D., Feilding, A., Nutt, D., &, Carhart-Harris, R. (2017). Altered insula connectivity under MDMA. Neuropsychopharmacology, 42, 2152–2162.