Morgan M J
Department of Psychology, University of Wales, Swansea, S. Wales, UK.
Neuropsychopharmacology. 1998 Oct;19(4):252-64. doi: 10.1016/S0893-133X(98)00012-8.
Recent preclinical evidence suggests that repeated exposure to 3, 4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine (MDMA; "ecstasy") produces long-term reductions in serotonin (5-HT) levels. 5-HT has been implicated in the regulation of mood, anxiety, aggression, impulsivity, and cognition. Accordingly, in the first of two separate studies, these variables were investigated in three groups: (1) MDMA group--recreational ecstasy users (who also used other illicit substances); (2) polydrug controls--who had never taken ecstasy, but otherwise had drug histories and personal characteristics similar to the ecstasy users; and (3) nondrug controls--who had never used illicit drugs, but had similar personal characteristics. All participants completed mood (Likert) scales, personality questionnaires (which included the impulsiveness, venturesomeness and empathy questionnaire-IVE), spatial span and "Tower of London" (TOL) tests, and a behavioural measure of impulsivity, the matching familiar figures test (MFF20). There were no group differences in mood, anxiety, anger/hostility, and cognitive performance, but the MDMA group committed significantly more errors in the MFF20. Subsequently, a larger sample of participants were administered mood (the General Health Questionnaire or GHQ) and personality (IVE) questionnaires before the administration of a TOL test, followed by the MFF20, and a second TOL test. Although there were no group differences in TOL performance, ecstasy users were again found to commit more errors in the MFF20 than polydrug users. Furthermore, the GHQ and IVE scores of the ecstasy users in the second study indicated, respectively, that they were more psychologically disturbed and impulsive than nondrug controls. The combined data from the two studies indicated that ecstasy users exhibited elevated impulsivity on both self-report and behavioral measures and that those who had taken the most ecstasy had the most elevated trait impulsiveness scores. These findings are consistent with previous evidence that elevated levels of impulsivity in humans are associated with reduced levels of serotonergic function.
近期临床前证据表明，反复接触3,4-亚甲基二氧甲基苯丙胺（摇头丸）会导致血清素（5-羟色胺）水平长期降低。5-羟色胺与情绪、焦虑、攻击性、冲动性及认知的调节有关。因此，在两项独立研究的第一项中，对三组对象的这些变量进行了调查：（1）摇头丸组——摇头丸娱乐使用者（也使用其他非法药物）；（2）多药对照组——从未服用过摇头丸，但有与摇头丸使用者相似的吸毒史和个人特征；（3）非药物对照组——从未使用过非法药物，但有相似的个人特征。所有参与者都完成了情绪（李克特）量表、人格问卷（包括冲动性、冒险性和移情问卷-IVE）、空间广度和“伦敦塔”（TOL）测试，以及一项冲动性行为测量——匹配熟悉图形测试（MFF20）。在情绪、焦虑、愤怒/敌意及认知表现方面，各组之间没有差异，但摇头丸组在MFF20测试中犯的错误明显更多。随后，在对更大样本的参与者进行TOL测试之前，先让他们填写情绪问卷（一般健康问卷或GHQ）和人格问卷（IVE），接着进行MFF20测试和第二次TOL测试。虽然在TOL测试表现上各组之间没有差异，但再次发现摇头丸使用者在MFF20测试中犯的错误比多药使用者更多。此外，第二项研究中摇头丸使用者的GHQ和IVE分数分别表明，他们在心理上比非药物对照组更易烦躁且更冲动。两项研究的综合数据表明，摇头丸使用者在自我报告和行为测量方面都表现出更高的冲动性，服用摇头丸最多的人具有最高的特质冲动性分数。这些发现与之前的证据一致，即人类冲动性水平升高与血清素能功能水平降低有关。
