Lv Xiu-Fang, Tao Li-Ming, Zhong Hui
a Department of Ophthalmology , the Second Hospital Affiliated to Anhui Medical University , Hefei , People's Republic of China.
b Department of Ophthalmology , Shenzhen Children's Hospital , Shenzhen , People's Republic of China.
Cutan Ocul Toxicol. 2019 Mar;38(1):81-87. doi: 10.1080/15569527.2018.1539007. Epub 2018 Nov 26.
As a powerful psychostimulant with high potential for abuse, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) causes long-lasting neurotoxicity. This study was to investigate the effects of systemic administration of MDMA on retinal damage in CD1 mice and its underlying mechanisms.
CD1 mice were randomly divided into two groups (n = 10): group 1 receiving PBS by intraperitoneal injection daily; group 2 receiving 2 mg/kg MDMA by intraperitoneal injection daily for 3 months. The retinal function was tested by electroretinography (ERG). The retinal morphology and histology was evaluated by Toluidine blue staining and TUNEL assay, respectively. Inflammatory cytokines were measured by ELISA assays. Gene and protein expression was detected by real-time PCR and western blot.
Results demonstrated that retinal damage was caused by MDMA after 3-month treatment, evidenced by retinal dysfunction through photoreceptor cell apoptosis induced by inflammatory response and oxidative stress.
Our study indicated that systemic administration of MDMA increased inflammatory response in photoreceptor cells to cause retinal dysfunction on CD1 mice, providing the scientific rationale for the photoreceptor cell damage caused by the MDMA abuse.
3,4-亚甲基二氧甲基苯丙胺（MDMA）作为一种具有高度滥用潜力的强效精神兴奋剂，会导致持久的神经毒性。本研究旨在探讨全身给予MDMA对CD1小鼠视网膜损伤的影响及其潜在机制。
将CD1小鼠随机分为两组（n = 10）：第1组每天腹腔注射磷酸盐缓冲液（PBS）；第2组每天腹腔注射2 mg/kg MDMA，持续3个月。通过视网膜电图（ERG）检测视网膜功能。分别通过甲苯胺蓝染色和TUNEL检测评估视网膜形态和组织学。通过酶联免疫吸附测定（ELISA）检测炎性细胞因子。通过实时聚合酶链反应（PCR）和蛋白质印迹法检测基因和蛋白质表达。
结果表明，MDMA治疗3个月后会导致视网膜损伤，表现为视网膜功能障碍，这是由炎症反应和氧化应激诱导的光感受器细胞凋亡所致。
我们的研究表明，全身给予MDMA会增加光感受器细胞中的炎症反应，导致CD1小鼠视网膜功能障碍，为MDMA滥用导致的光感受器细胞损伤提供了科学依据。
