Self-reports of executive dysfunction in current ecstasy/polydrug Users.

Objectives/background: Ecstasy/polydrug users have exhibited deficits in executive functioning in laboratory tests. We sought to extend these findings by investigating the extent to which ecstasy/polydrug users manifest executive deficits in everyday life.

Methods: Forty-two current ecstasy/polydrug users, 18 previous (abstinent for at least 6 months) ecstasy/polydrug users, and 50 non-users of ecstasy (including both non-users of any illicit drug and some cannabis-only users) completed the self-report Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Adult Version (BRIEF-A) measure.

Prospective memory functioning among ecstasy/polydrug users: evidence from the Cambridge Prospective Memory Test (CAMPROMPT).

Rationale: Prospective memory (PM) deficits in recreational drug users have been documented in recent years. However, the assessment of PM has largely been restricted to self-reported measures that fail to capture the distinction between event-based and time-based PM. The aim of the present study is to address this limitation.

Anxiolytic and anxiogenic drug effects on male and female gerbils in the black-white box.

Neurokinin-1, (NK1) receptor antagonists offer strong potential as anxiolytic drugs with few side effects. The use of the Mongolian gerbil for anxiety research offers advantages because gerbil NK1 receptors share a greater homology with human NK1 receptors than those of other rodents. Studies are needed to validate existing tests of anxiety for use with this species.

Everyday and prospective memory deficits in ecstasy/polydrug users.

The impact of ecstasy/polydrug use on real-world memory (i.e. everyday memory, cognitive failures and prospective memory [PM]) was investigated in a sample of 42 ecstasy/polydrug users and 31 non-ecstasy users.

The effects of acute, chronic and withdrawn progesterone in male and female Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus) in two tests of anxiety.

Progesterone generally produces anxiolytic effects in rats and mice. However, sex differences in response to this neuroactive steroid have not been systematically investigated. Thus, this study investigated the anxiety-modulating actions of acute, chronic and withdrawn progesterone treatment in male and female Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus) in the elevated plus-maze (EPM) and black-white box (BWB).

The effects of chronic corticosterone on hippocampal astrocyte numbers: a comparison of male and female Wistar rats.

Chronic stress an/or glucocorticoid administration produces atrophy of hippocampal neurons. However, evidence of the impact of glucocorticoids on glial cells, especially in both males and females, is limited. In the present study, we investigated the total percentage body weight, hippocampal volume and hippocampal astrocyte numbers following chronic corticosterone treatment in male and female Wistar rats.