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Journal home Current Issue Advance Online Publication Archive Online sample issue FREE! Author index Keyword index For authors Editorial Board Instructions for authors Aims and scope Indexed in Author queries Online Submission Customer Services Subscription information Journal prices Order sample issue Purchase articles, reprints & permissions Advertising Contact NPG		Original Article Neuropsychopharmacology (1999) 20 565-581.10.1038/sj.npp.1395272 Neurometabolic Effects of Psilocybin, 3,4-Methylenedioxyethylamphetamine (MDE) and d-Methamphetamine in Healthy Volunteers A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled PET Study with [18F]FDG Euphrosyne Gouzoulis-Mayfrank1 MD, Mathias Schreckenberger2,3 MD, Osama Sabri2 MD, Christoph Arning2, Bernhard Thelen1 MD, Manfred Spitzer2,3 MD, Ph.D, Karl-Artur Kovar4 Ph.D, Leopold Hermle5 MD, Udalrich Büll2 MD and Henning Sass1 MD 1Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Technology (RWTH), Aachen, Germany 2Department of Nuclear Medicine, University of Technology (RWTH), Aachen, Germany 3Department of Psychiatry, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany 4Pharmaceutical Institute, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany 5Psychiatric and Neurological Hospital Christophsbad, Göppingen, Germany Correspondence: Dr Euphrosyne Gouzoulis-Mayfrank, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Technology (RWTH), Pauwelsstrasse 30, D-52074 Aachen, Germany ABSTRACT The neurometabolic effects of the hallucinogen psilocybin (PSI; 0.2 mg/kg), the entactogen 3,4-methylenedioxyethylamphetamine (MDE; 2 mg/kg) and the stimulant d-methamphetamine (METH; 0.2-0.4 mg/kg) and the drugs' interactions with a prefrontal activation task were investigated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled human [F-18]fluorodeoxyglucoseFDG-positron emission tomographicPET study (each group: n = 8). Subjects underwent two scans (control: word repetition; activation: word association) within 2-4 weeks. Psilocybin increased rMRGlu in distinct right hemispheric frontotemporal cortical regions, particularly in the anterior cingulate and decreased rMRGlu in the thalamus. Both MDE and METH induced cortical hypometabolism and cerebellar hypermetabolism. In the MDE group, cortical hypometabolism was more pronounced in frontal regions, with the exception of the right anterior cingulate, which tended to be hyperactive. Cognitive activation-related increases in left frontocortical regions were attenuated under all three psychoactive substances, but less so under MDE. Taking into account performance data and subjective reports on task difficulty, these effects may result from different mechanisms across the three groups. Our PSI data are in line with studies on acute schizophrenic patients suggesting frontal overactivity at rest, but diminished capacity to activate prefrontal regions upon cognitive demand. The MDE data support the hypothesis that entactogens constitute a distinct psychoactive substance class, which takes an intermediate position between stimulants and hallucinogens. Keywords: Psilocybin; MDE; Ecstasy; Methamphetamine; Model psychosis; FDG-PET; Activation study   top		Article Links  Send to a friend  Download PDF  Full Text   Next Article   Previous Article   Table of Contents
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