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Gamma-vinyl GABA inhibits methamphetamine, heroin, or ethanol-induced increases in nucleus accumbens dopamine.

We examined the acute effect of the irreversible GABA-transaminase inhibitor, gamma-vinyl GABA (GVG, Sabril((R)), Vigabatrin((R))) on increases in nucleus accumbens (NAc) dopamine (DA) following acute administration of methamphetamine, heroin, or ethanol. Methamphetamine (2.5 mg/kg) produced a dose-dependent increase (2, 700%) in NAc DA. GVG preadministration (300 or 600 mg/kg), however, inhibited this response by approximately 39 and 61%, respectively. The lower dose of methamphetamine (1.25 mg/kg), increased DA by 1, 700%. This response was inhibited to a similar extent (44%) regardless of the GVG dose preadministered (300 or 600 mg/kg). In addition, heroin-induced increases in NAc DA (0.5 mg/kg, 170%) were inhibited or completely abolished by GVG (150 or 300 mg/kg, 65 and 100%, respectively). Finally, at half the dose necessary for heroin, GVG (150 mg/kg) also completely abolished ethanol-induced increases in NAc DA following a 0.25 g/kg challenge dose (140%). Taken with our previous findings using nicotine or cocaine as the challenge drug, these results indicate that GVG attenuates increases in NAc DA by a mechanism common to many drugs of abuse. However, it appears unlikely that an acute dose of GVG can completely inhibit increases in NAc DA following challenges with a drug whose mechanism of action is mediated primarily through the DA reuptake site.

Analgesics, Opioid↗

Quantification of methamphetamine, amphetamine and enantiomers by semi-micro column HPLC with fluorescence detection; applications on abusers' single hair analyses.

Achiral and chiral semi-micro column high-performance liquid chromatographic methods with fluorescence detection to determine methamphetamine and amphetamine in human hair are described. These compounds were extracted into 5% trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) in methanol, derivatized with 4-(4,5-diphenyl-1H-imidazol-2-yl)-benzoyl chloride and separated either on a 250 x 1.5 mm i.d. octadecyl-silane (ODS) or a 150 x 2 mm i.d. OD-RH column. Linear calibration curves extending over a wide range of concentration that covers the practical samples were obtained for amphetamine, methamphetamine and their enantiomers (r = 0.999). Resolution values for amphetamine and methamphetamine enantiomers were 3.4 and 1.1, respectively. Intra- and inter-day variations of both the methods were not larger than 8.9% expressed as relative standard deviations (n >/= 5). The limits of detection at a signal-to-noise ratio of 3 obtained by both the methods were in the range of 1.0-4.7 fmol/5 microL injection with the achiral method being more sensitive. Abusers' hair samples were analyzed by the two methods and only the S(+)-enantiomers were found in eight Japanese abusers' hair samples. The achiral method was used to study the concentrations of these compounds in single black and white hair strands of abusers.

Amphetamine↗

Determination of amphetamine, methamphetamine and desmethyldeprenyl in human plasma by gas chromatography/negative ion chemical ionization mass spectrometry.

A sensitive and specific assay for the quantitative determination of amphetamine, methamphetamine and desmethyldeprenyl in human plasma specimens is described. Electron capture/negative ion chemical ionization gas chromatography/mass spectrometry is used to determine the extracted plasma concentrations of the three target compounds as their N-heptafluorobutyryl derivatives. Quantitation is performed by stable isotope dilution using d6-amphetamine and d6-methamphetamine as internal standards. Selected ion monitoring of the [M-HF]- ions of both the analytes and internal standards results in minimum quantifiable limits of 0.10 ng ml-1 for both amphetamine and methamphetamine and 0.25 ng ml-1 for desmethyldeprenyl. Excellent linearity (r = 0.998) up to at least 5.00 ng ml-1 is demonstrated.

Amphetamine↗

Cation-selective exhaustive injection and sweeping MEKC for direct analysis of methamphetamine and its metabolites in urine.

Direct analysis of methamphetamine, amphetamine, and p-hydroxymethamphetamine in urine was achieved by cation-selective exhaustive injection and sweeping micellar EKC. A bare fused-silica capillary (40 cm, 50 microm id) was filled with phosphate buffer (80 mM, pH 3, containing 20% ACN). Then a high-conductivity buffer (100 mM phosphate, pH 3; 6.9 kPa for 2.5 min) was injected. Samples were loaded using electrokinetic injection (10 kV, 600 s) which created long zones of cationic analytes. To enhance sensitivity by sweeping, the stacking step was performed using a phosphate buffer (50 mM, pH 3, containing 20% ACN and 100 mM SDS) at -20 kV before separation by MEKC. This method was capable of detecting the analytes at ppb levels. The calibration plots were linear (r(2) >or= 0.9948) over a range of 100-5000 ng/mL for methamphetamine, and 100-2000 ng/mL for amphetamine and p-hydroxymethamphetamine. The LODs (S/N = 3) were 20 ng/mL for methamphetamine, and 15 ng/mL for amphetamine and p-hydroxymethamphetamine. The method was applied to analysis of 14 urine samples of addicts and is suitable for screening suspected samples for forensic purposes. The results showed good agreement with fluorescence polarization immunoassay and GC-MS.

Amphetamine↗

Immediate-early gene response to methamphetamine, haloperidol, and quinolinic acid is not impaired in Huntington's disease transgenic mice.

Striatal neurons in symptomatic Huntington's disease (HD) transgenic mice are resistant to a variety of toxic insults, including quinolinic acid (QA), kainic acid and 3-nitropropionic acid. The basis for this resistance is currently unknown. To investigate the possibility that the immediate-early gene (IEG) response is defective in symptomatic HD mice leading to a lack of response to these compounds, we examined the expression of c-Fos and Krox 24 after administration of the indirect dopamine agonist methamphetamine, the dopamine D(2) receptor antagonist haloperidol and the neurotoxin QA in 5- and 10-week-old R6/2 transgenic HD and wild-type mice. Unlike wild-type and pre-symptomatic R6/2 transgenic HD mice, 10-week-old symptomatic HD mice were resistant to methamphetamine-induced gliosis and QA lesion. There was, however, no difference in the number or distribution of c-Fos-immunoreactive nuclei 2 hr after single injections of methamphetamine or haloperidol among 5- and 10-week-old wild-type mice and 5- and 10-week-old R6/2 HD mice. Similarly, despite their resistance to QA-induced lesioning and lower basal levels of krox-24 mRNA, the symptomatic R6/2 mice had equivalent increases in the amount of c-fos and krox-24 mRNA compared to wild-type and pre-symptomatic R6/2 HD mice as determined by in situ hybridization and densitometry 2 hr after QA administration. These data demonstrate that the c-Fos and Krox 24 IEG response to dopamine agonists, dopamine antagonists and neurotoxic insult is functional in symptomatic R6/2 HD mice. Resistance to toxic insult in R6/2 mice may be conferred by interactions of mutant huntingtin with proteins or transcriptional processes further along the toxic cascade.

Animals↗

Cardiovascular effects of methamphetamine in Parkinson's disease patients.

Cardiovascular responses after intravenous methamphetamine were assessed in 11 Parkinson's disease (PD) patients. Systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), heart rate (HR), and electrocardiogram (ECG) were monitored for 103 minutes. After methamphetamine administration, SBP and DBP increased significantly in both PD and normal controls whereas placebo had no effect. In PD patients, however, the duration of SBP and DBP responses to methamphetamine and the maximum increase from baseline was attenuated compared with the controls. A significant correlation was found between individual BP responsiveness and the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) motor score. These findings suggest that in PD there is impairment of catecholamine release from peripheral sympathetic presynaptic terminals, which correlates with motor impairment.

Adrenergic Fibers↗

Comparative effects of methamphetamine and nicotine on the striatal [(11)C]raclopride binding in unanesthetized monkeys.

Although a very large literature exists on the in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo effects of nicotine on dopamine release in rodents, similar data in primates are scant. This study was initiated to compare methamphetamine to nicotine given i.v. to normal unanesthetized monkeys using positron emission tomography (PET) techniques. Release of dopamine in the striatum using [(11)C]raclopride was determined indirectly in four nicotine-naïve adult Macaca mulatta monkeys under conscious and isoflurane-anesthetized conditions using high-resolution PET. [(11)C]Raclopride was given i.v. as a bolus injection followed by continuous infusion with steady state over 30-45 min. Nicotine bitartrate was then given as a bolus plus infusion for 30 min in doses of 32 microg/kg + 0.8 microg/kg/min or 100 microg/kg + 2.53 microg/kg/min as base. The larger doses of nicotine caused significant cardiovascular effects; these doses did not displace [(11)C]raclopride binding in either dorsal or ventral striatum under the anesthetized conscious condition. In contrast, isoflurane-anesthesia induced a slight but significant dose-dependent reduction of [(11)C]raclopride binding by nicotine even at the same doses used in the anesthetized condition. Methamphetamine in bolus doses of 0.1, 0.3, and 1.0 mg/kg i.v. under conscious condition caused a significant displacement of [(11)C]raclopride and isoflurane-anesthesia facilitated the displacement induced by nicotine. These results indicate that nicotine, in high tobacco-smoking-related doses, does not release sufficient brain dopamine to displace [(11)C]raclopride in the striatum in the awake and fully conscious state, in contrast to small doses of methamphetamine.

Anesthesia↗

Differential regulation by stimulants of neocortical expression of mrt1, arc, and homer1a mRNA in the rats treated with repeated methamphetamine.

The present work was conducted to obtain clues for the possible roles of a novel stimulant-inducible gene mrt1 (methamphetamine-responsive transcript 1) encoding a PDZ-PX protein in stimulant-induced behavioral sensitization. In the young adult rats, repeated daily treatment with methamphetamine (4 mg/kg, intraperitoneally, once a day) for 5 days caused an enhanced behavioral response to methamphetamine: behavioral sensitization. The 5-day intermittent administration of MAP upregulated the basal expression of mrt1 transcripts and eliminated the increasing effects of a challenge dose of MAP (1.6 mg/kg, i.p.) or cocaine (30 mg/kg, i.p.) on mrt1 expression on day 14 of withdrawal in the neocortex that has been considered to be composed of a neuron circuit implicated in the sensitization phenomenon. In contrast, the basal expression of other stimulant-inducible and plasticity-related genes arc and homer1a and the ability of MAP or cocaine challenge to augment the amounts of their transcripts were not affected by the repeated MAP regimen in the cortical area. These findings suggest the differential regulation by stimulant of neocortical mrt1, arc, and homer1a expression in the behaviorally sensitized animals and supports the view that stimulant induction of mrt1 may be involved in the early molecular signalings for stimulant sensitization.

Animals↗

Immunocytochemical evidence for methamphetamine-induced serotonergic axon loss in the rat brain.

Central serotonin (5-HT) axons were visualized by immunocytochemistry to assess both acute and long-lasting changes in innervation density following methamphetamine administration to rats. Two morphologically distinct subtypes of 5-HT axons (fine and beaded) were differentially affected by d-methamphetamine (d-MA); the density of fine serotonergic axons was selectively decreased both 4 hours and 2 weeks after administration of d-MA. Acute depletion of 5-HT from fine axons, but not from beaded axons, was observed in the brains of all rats treated 4 hours previously with either a 100 mg/kg or 15 mg/kg dose of d-MA. Persistent loss of 5-HT axons was observed in 30% of rats treated 1 or 2 weeks previously with doses of d-MA which produce long-term deficits in biochemical markers for 5-HT. In the fraction of animals that exhibited denervation, fine serotonergic fibers were selectively ablated by d-MA, but beaded serotonergic fibers were spared. Thus, d-MA is similar to other amphetamine derivatives (e.g., p-chloroamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine) in that it acts selectively upon a morphologically distinct class of 5-HT axons but differs in that it produces long-lasting axon loss in only a fraction of animals. These data provide morphologic evidence of 5-HT axon loss following methamphetamine administration and further confirm the differential vulnerability of a particular morphological subtype of serotonergic axons to the neurotoxic effects of substituted amphetamines.

Animals↗

Effects of high-dose methamphetamine on monoamine uptake sites in rat brain measured by quantitative autoradiography.

The neurotoxicity of methamphetamine to monoaminergic neurons was examined. Neurotoxicity was assessed by quantitative autoradiography using radioligands specific for binding to norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin uptake sites. High-dose administration of methamphetamine led to decreases in binding to uptake sites for the three monoamines. Norepinephrine binding sites were decreased in certain amygdaloid nuclei and in the dorsomedial hypothalamic nucleus. Serotonin binding sites were reduced in widespread brain areas, while dopamine binding sites were reduced in the caudate putamen, olfactory tubercle, and nucleus accumbens. The decreases in binding site density for the three monoamines are limited to terminal field areas; cell body areas are not affected. Our results indicate that methamphetamine is neurotoxic to serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine neurons. The neurotoxicity to norepinephrine neurons is in selected brain areas.

Animals↗

A murine dopamine neuron-specific cDNA library and microarray: increased COX1 expression during methamphetamine neurotoxicity.

Due to brain tissue heterogeneity, the molecular genetic profile of any neurotransmitter-specific neuronal subtype is unknown. The purpose of this study was to purify a population of dopamine neurons, construct a cDNA library, and generate an initial gene expression profile and a microarray representative of dopamine neuron transcripts. Ventral mesencephalic dopamine neurons were purified by fluorescent-activated cell sorting from embryonic day 13.5 transgenic mice harboring a 4.5-kb rat tyrosine hydroxylase promoter-lacZ fusion. Nine-hundred sixty dopamine neuron cDNA clones were sequenced and arrayed for use in studies of gene expression changes during methamphetamine neurotoxicity. A neurotoxic dose of methamphetamine produced a greater than twofold up-regulation of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase polypeptide I transcript from adult mouse substantia nigra at 12 h posttreatment. This is the first work to describe a gene expression profile for a neuronal subtype and to identify gene expression changes during methamphetamine neurotoxicity.

3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid↗

Urinary excretion of p-hydroxylated methamphetamine metabolites in man. I. A method for determination by high-performance liquid chromatography-electrochemistry.

p-Hydroxymethamphetamine and p-hydroxyamphetamine in urine samples from methamphetamine addicts were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography-electrochemistry (HPLC-EC). The urine samples were hydrolyzed with equal volumes of 12 N HCl at 60 degrees C for 4 h and were then diluted with water and neutralized with NaOH solution. The neutralized urine was passed through a solid phase extraction column, Bond-Elut C18, and after washing, the substances were eluted with acidified acetonitrile. The eluate was evaporated under a stream of nitrogen. The residue was dissolved in 0.1 N PCA and a small volume of the aliquots was injected into the HPLC. This procedure for determination quantitated both free and conjugated forms of the metabolites together. Thereby we could determine concentrations of the metabolites in minute urine samples; i.e., from 2.5 microliters urine. The free form of the metabolites alone was analyzed by the same procedure except for hydrolysis of the conjugates. Concentrations of methamphetamine, p-hydroxymethamphetamine and p-hydroxyamphetamine in the urine samples of addicts collected at arbitrary times were determined by this procedure or by gas chromatography. It was found that there was no correlation between the concentration of methamphetamine and that of the metabolites. This investigation also revealed that various ratios between the concentrations generally were scattered over a wide range of percentages.

Amphetamines↗

Effects of naloxone on methamphetamine and apomorphine stereotypy and on haloperidol catalepsy in rats.

Pretreatment with the opiate antagonist naloxone, at 1.25-5 mg/kg, increased the intensity of methamphetamine stereotypy, had no effect (over a range of 0.3125-5 mg/kg) on apomorphine stereotypy, and antagonized haloperidol catalepsy in rats at 1.25-5 mg/kg. It is suggested that naloxone, by blocking the opiate receptors located on the nigro-striatal and mesolimbic dopamine (DA) nerve terminals, releases the DA systems from endogenous inhibition, presumably caused by endogenous opiate systems, and thereby potentiates methamphetamine stereotypy and antagonizes haloperidol catalepsy. However, the possibility that naloxone might have affected methamphetamine stereotypy and haloperidol catalepsy by modulating the activity of the central noradrenergic and GABAergic systems, which are reported to influence dopaminergically mediated behaviours, also needs to be considered.

Animals↗

The differential effects of haloperidol and methamphetamine on time estimation in the rat.

Forty rats were trained to make a left lever response if a signal (white noise) was 2.5s and to make a right lever response if the signal was 6.3s. When seven intermediate signal durations, to which responses were not reinforced, were randomly interspersed the probability of a right-lever ('long') response increased as a function of signal duration. Methamphetamine shifted this psychometric function leftward and decreased its slope: haloperidol also decreased the slope but shifted the function rightward. A combination of haloperidol and methamphetamine led to a function similar to the saline control function. The leftward shift probably reflects an increase in the speed of an internal clock, and the rightward shift probably reflects a decrease in its speed. Since methamphetamine releases several catecholamines, including dopamine, and haloperidol blocks dopamine receptors, it is plausible that the horizontal location of the psychometric function (the speed of the clock) is related to the effective level of dopamine.

Animals↗

Effects of methamphetamine on novelty-seeking behaviour by mice.

The effects of several doses from 0.125-3 mg/kg of methamphetamine on the novelty-seeking behaviour of male Swiss albino mice were studied. Methamphetamine induced a dose-dependent inhibition of novelty preference. Furthermore, a dose of methamphetamine (1 mg/kg) which strongly decreased novelty preference in naive mice induced a significantly lower decrease in exploration of subjects previously exposed to novelty. These data provide some support for Berlyne's (1967) suggestion that amphetamine has a disruptive effect on exploration by producing over-arousal.

Animals↗

Influence of dopamine synthesis on methamphetamine-induced changes in striatal and adrenal tyrosine hydroxylase activity.

Methamphetamine in large doses decreases striatal tyrosine hydroxylase activity. This effect is prevented by neuroleptic agents such as chlorpromazine and haloperidol which would suggest that released dopamine may be involved in the response. To test this hypothesis, we have altered dopamine synthesis with alpha-methyl-p-tyrosine and L-Dopa and found that dopamine synthesis is necessary for the observed depression of striatal TH activity by methamphetamine. In the adrenal gland, however, the increase in TH activity by methamphetamine is not prevented by inhibition of catecholamine synthesis. It is possible that released dopamine may be inhibiting TH activity by activation of pre- or postsynaptic dopamine receptors in the neostriatum resulting in activation of the neuronal feedback pathway or released dopamine may act on dendrodendritic autoreceptors in the substantia nigra.

Adrenal Glands↗

Sexual differences in sensitivity to methamphetamine toxicity.

Male and female mice were treated with methamphetamine (10.0 mg/kg/injection for four injections) and sacrificed two weeks later. It was observed that the methamphetamine treatment caused depletions in striatal dopamine which were significantly greater in males (74%) than in females (56%). These results indicate that estrogen may have a protective effect against methamphetamine-induced dopamine depletions and may relate to the fact that males are more likely to incur Parkinson's disease than females.

Animals↗

The effects of deprenyl on methamphetamine-induced dopamine depletions.

The effects of deprenyl on methamphetamine-induced dopamine depletions were studied in mice. Four SC injections of 12.5 mg/kg of methamphetamine at two-hour intervals caused substantial (72-82%) and long-lasting depletions of striatal dopamine. Pretreatment with either 25 or 40 mg/kg of deprenyl did not significantly alter the magnitude of this depletion. These results indicate that, unlike what is observed following MPTP, there is no protection afforded dopaminergic cells by deprenyl pretreatment in the methamphetamine model of parkinsonism.

Animals↗