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Neurotoxicity of serotonergic psychedelics??

>>There's too much science in here >>

Frankly, a great deal of this thread suffers from the opposite.

>>Who says that amphetamines increase learning? Procedural learning, sure, but explicit memory? I've never seen any evidence to support this.>>

I do.
On a recent journal-article search (I'm too lazy and hung-over to do it again), I found a study showing that administration of d-amphetamine increased verbal LTM coding and recall in comparison to the control group.
(this is way off topic).

ebola
 
protovack said:
My professor said (and I quote), "LSD is neurotoxic in the raphe nuclei."
...
I mean, what do you think he meant by "neurotoxic"?
Click to expand...
Originally posted by BilZ0r
2) Do you know which neurotrophic factors are released with drug use? (amphetamines or tryptamines/mdma)
5-HT2a receptor agonism is accociated with upregulation of BDNF in the cortex (in the rat atleast), and some very limited evidence for GDNF release as well.
Click to expand...

BilZ0r is right here, yet I have something to add to this. Something that can be read in Nichols (2004) 'Hallucinogens' review paper under chapter 4.3.4.4. 'Serotonin2A receptor activation alters gene expression'. In this chapter can be read that the activation of 5-HT2A receptors cause some immediate-early gene products to be formed. Normally the forming of some early gene products can trigger the formation of late gene products which alter cellular processes. These cellular processes can range from the formation of new receptors, synthesis of neurothrophic factors or new enzymes, and so on and so forth.

Nichols notes in that chapter that there's still a lot of work to be done in this field to find out all the functions and consequences of these gene products being formed, but one conclusion, made by other authors, is worth noting:
Nichols. (2004). Hallucinogens
The authors note that most of the genes whose expression is altered by LSD are thought to be involved in the process of synaptic plasticity.
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..and some speculation by Nichols:
Nichols. (2004). Hallucinogens
It will be most interesting to see follow-up work along these lines. Gene expression changes in response to the powerful hallucinogen LSD may help to identify any number of cellular components and processes that are important to CNS function. It seems possible that a search for homologous overexpressed gene products in schizophrenia brains may be a productive avenue to determine whether hallucinogens have cellular actions in common with schizophrenia or other psychiatric disorders.
Click to expand...

To get back to the original question (see first quote of my post), I think the professor could very well have thought, in the light of altered gene expression, that íf LSD is interfering with synaptic plasticity thán it can change 'good' synaptic connections to 'bad' synaptic connections.... and having something changed from good to bad is unwanted. This is what he could've coined 'neurotoxic'. (Mmmh, that doesn't sound too logical for a professor).
Anyways, in my eyes, this way of reasoning is not acceptable for a university professor since there obviously really needs to be done a lot more research on questions like these...
Yet you know professors, they just don't want you to take some acid, because they don't want you to really get interested in the field and take all their cosy university positions. (Heheh, just kidding).

Nichols, D. E. (2004). Hallucinogens. Pharmacology & Therapeutics, 101, 131 - 181.

(Eventhough this is the 'Advanced Drug Discussion' forum, I chose not to make this reply too detailed. Naming all the gene products and possible consequences of their synthesis might not contribute to the overall idea of this topic. Next to that, I do not want to annoy the people shouting stuff like 'too much science' or 'less fact!') :)
 
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