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The Acute Effect in Rats of 3, 4‐Methylenedioxyethamphetamine (MDEA, “Eve”) on Body Temperature and Long Term Degeneration of 5‐HT Neurones in Brain: A Comparison with MDMA (“Ecstasy”)

1999; Wiley; Volume: 84; Issue: 6 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1111/j.1600-0773.1999.tb01492.x

1600-0773

María Isabel Colado, Raquel Granados, Esther O’Shea, B. Moreno Esteban, A. Richard Green,

Psychedelics and Drug Studies

Abstract: Administration of a single dose of the recreationally used drug 3, 4‐methylenedioxyethamphetamine (MDEA or “eve”) to Dark Agouti rats resulted in an acute dose‐dependent hyperthermic response. The peak effect and duration of hyperthermia of a dose of MDEA of 35 mg/kg intraperitoneally was similar to a dose of 3, 4‐methylenedioxymetham‐phetamine (MDMA or “ecstasy”) of 15 mg/kg intraperitoneally. Seven days later this dose of MDMA produced a marked (50%) loss of 5‐HT and its metabolite 5‐HIAA in cortex, hippocampus and striatum and a similar loss of [ 3 H]‐paroxetine binding in cortex; these losses reflecting the MDMA‐induced neurotoxic degeneration of 5‐HT nerve endings. In contrast, administration of MDEA (15, 25 or 35 mg/kg), even at the highest dose, produced only a 20% loss in cortex and hippocampus and no decrease in striatum. The neurotoxic effect of MDEA was only weakly dose‐dependent. Neither MDEA (35 mg/kg) nor MDMA (15 mg/kg) altered striata! dopamine content 7 days later. MDEA appeared to have about half the potency of MDMA in inducing acute hyperthermia and 25% of the potency in inducing degeneration of cerebral 5‐HT neurones. However since higher doses of MDEA (compared to MDMA) are probably necessary to induce mood changing effects, these data do not support any contention that this compound is a “safer′’recreational drug than MDMA in terms of either acute toxicity or long term neurodegeneration.