Party drug ecstasy may help treat anxiety

Scientists have found how ecstasy acts on the brain, and suggested that the common party drug may help treat anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Brain imaging experiments have revealed for the first time how ecstasy produces feelings of euphoria in users.
The new study at Imperial College London is the first to use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) on resting subjects under its influence.
Twenty-five volunteers underwent brain scans on two occasions, one after taking the drug and one after taking a placebo, without knowing which they had been given.
The results show that MDMA decreases activity in the limbic system - a set of structures involved in emotional responses.

These effects were stronger in subjects who reported stronger subjective experiences, suggesting that they are related.

Communication between the medial temporal lobe and medial prefrontal cortex, which is involved in emotional control, was reduced.
This effect, and the drop in activity in the limbic system, are opposite to patterns seen in patients who suffer from anxiety.
MDMA also increased communication between the amygdala and the hippocampus. Studies on patients with PTSD have found a reduction in communication between these areas.
"We found that MDMA caused reduced blood flow in regions of the brain linked to emotion and memory. These effects may be related to the feelings of euphoria that people experience on the drug," Dr Robin Carhart-Harris, who performed the research, said.

"The findings suggest possible clinical uses of MDMA in treating anxiety and PTSD, but we need to be careful about drawing too many conclusions from a study in healthy volunteers. We would have to do studies in patients to see if we find the same effects," said David Nutt, who led the project.
The volunteers were asked to recall their favourite and worst memories while inside the scanner.
They rated their favourite memories as more vivid, emotionally intense and positive after MDMA than placebo, and they rated their worst memories less negatively.
This was reflected in the way that parts of the brain were activated more or less strongly under MDMA, researchers said.