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±3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is a popular recreational drug that enhances sociability and feelings of closeness with others. These "prosocial" effects appear to motivate the recreational use of MDMA and may also form the basis of its potential as an adjunct to psychotherapy. However, the extent to which MDMA differs from prototypic stimulant drugs, such as dextroamphetamine, methamphetamine, and methylphenidate, in either its behavioral effects or mechanisms of action, is not fully known. The purpose of this review is to evaluate human laboratory findings of the social effects of MDMA compared to other stimulants, ranging from simple subjective ratings of sociability to more complex elements of social processing and behavior. We also review the neurochemical mechanisms by which these drugs may impact sociability. Together, the findings reviewed here lay the groundwork for better understanding the socially enhancing effects of MDMA that distinguish it from other stimulant drugs, especially as these effects relate to the reinforcing and potentially therapeutic effects of the drug.

The practice of "microdosing", or the use of repeated, very low doses of LSD to improve mood or cognition, has received considerable public attention, but empirical studies are lacking. Controlled studies are needed to investigate both the therapeutic potential and the neurobiological underpinnings of this pharmacologic treatment. Methods. The present study was designed to examine the effects of a single low dose of LSD (13 micrograms) vs placebo on resting-state functional connectivity and cerebral blood flow in healthy young adults. Twenty men and women, aged 18-35, participated in two fMRI scanning sessions in which they received placebo or LSD under double-blind conditions. During each session, the participants completed drug effect and mood questionnaires, and physiological measures were recorded. During expected peak drug effect, they underwent resting-state BOLD and ASL scans. Cerebral blood flow as well as amygdala and thalamic connectivity were analyzed. Results. LSD increased amygdala seed-based connectivity with the right angular gyrus, right middle frontal gyrus, and the cerebellum, and decreased amygdala connectivity with the left and right postcentral gyrus and the superior temporal gyrus. This low dose of LSD had weak and variable effects on mood, but its effects on positive mood were positively correlated with the increase in amygdala -middle frontal gyrus connectivity strength. Conclusions. These preliminary findings show that a very low dose of LSD, which produces negligible subjective changes, alters brain connectivity in limbic circuits. Additional studies, especially with repeated dosing, will reveal whether these neural changes are related to the drug's purported antidepressant effect. NCT03790358

Preclinical and clinical evidence indicates that opioid drugs have stress-dampening effects. In animal models, opioid analgesics attenuate responses to isolation distress, and in humans, opioids reduce stress related to anticipation of physical pain. The stress-reducing effects of opioid drugs may contribute to their abuse potential. Despite this evidence in laboratory animals, the effects of opioids on responses to psychosocial stress have not been determined in humans. Here we examined the effects of buprenorphine, a μ-opioid partial agonist used to treat opioid dependence and pain, on subjective and physiological responses to a stressful public speaking task in healthy adults. We hypothesized that buprenorphine would reduce subjective and physiological stress responses. Healthy adult volunteers (N = 48) were randomly assigned to receive placebo, 0.2mg sublingual buprenorphine, or 0.4mg sublingual buprenorphine in a two-session study with a stressful speaking task (Trier Social Stress Test; TSST) and a non-stressful control task. During the sessions, the participants reported on their mood states, provided subjective appraisals of the task, and measures of salivary cortisol, heart rate, and blood pressure at regular intervals. Stress produced its expected effects, increasing heart rate, blood pressure, salivary cortisol, and subjective ratings of anxiety and negative mood. In line with our hypothesis, both doses of buprenorphine significantly dampened salivary cortisol responses to stress. On self-report ratings, buprenorphine reduced how threatening participants found the tasks. These results suggest that enhanced opioid signaling dampens responses to social stress in humans, as it does in laboratory animals. This stress-dampening effect of buprenorphine may contribute to the non-medical use of opioid drugs.

Effects of MDMA on attention to positive social cues and pleasantness of affective touch. http://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/10667/ Article LJMU has developed LJMU Research Online for users to access the research output of the University more effectively. AbstractThe psychostimulant drug ± 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) reportedly produces distinctive feelings of empathy and closeness with others. MDMA increases social behavior in animal models and has shown promise in psychiatric disorders such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). How it produces these prosocial effects is not known. This behavioral and psychophysiological study examined the effects of MDMA, compared to the prototypical stimulant methamphetamine (MA), on two measures of social behavior in healthy young adults: i) responses to socially relevant, "affective" touch, and ii) visual attention to emotional faces. Men and women (N=36) attended four sessions in which they received MDMA (0.75 or 1.5mg/kg), MA (20mg), or a placebo in randomized order under double-blind conditions. Responses to experienced and observed affective touch (i.e., being touched or watching others being touched) were assessed using facial electromyography (EMG), a proxy of affective state. Responses to emotional faces were assessed using electrooculography (EOG) in a measure of attentional bias. Subjective ratings were also included. We hypothesized that MDMA, but not MA, would enhance ratings of pleasantness and psychophysiological responses to affective touch and increase attentional bias toward positive facial expressions. Consistent with this, we found that MDMA, but not MA, selectively enhanced ratings of pleasantness of experienced affective touch. Neither drug altered ratings of pleasantness of observed touch. On the EOG measure of attentional bias, MDMA, but not MA, increased attention toward happy faces. These results provide new evidence that MDMA can enhance the experience of positive social interactions; in this case pleasantness of physical touch and attentional bias toward positive facial expressions. The findings are consistent with evidence that the prosocial effects are unique to MDMA relative to another stimulant. Understanding the