Background: Methamphetamine (METH) is an increasingly popular and highly addictive psychostimulant with a significant impact on public health. Chronic METH exposure has been associated with neurotoxic effects, profound neuropsychological deficits, and impaired quality of life, but few studies have examined the effect of the drug on the ability to carry out everyday activities. We assessed the effect of METH dependence on everyday functioning using the UCSD Performance-Based Skills Assessment (UPSA-2), a performance-based measure designed to evaluate real-life skills.
Method: UPSA-2 performance was quantified in 15 currently abstinent individuals with a history of METH dependence and 15 drug-free comparison subjects. The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and Wisconsin Card Sorting Task (WCST) were administered to assess psychopathology and executive function.
Results: METH-dependent participants exhibited significant impairment on the UPSA-2 total score and several UPSA-2 subscales, including comprehension, finance, transportation, communication, and medication management compared to drug-free comparison subjects. Lower UPSA-2 scores were associated with impaired performance on the WCST, higher PANSS scores, and drug use at an earlier age.
Conclusion: METH dependence may be associated with decreased everyday functioning ability potentially mediated by frontal cortex dysfunction or the emergence of psychopathology related to chronic drug use.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2010.01.013 | DOI Listing |
J Neuroimmunol
January 2025
Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85257, USA; Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Neuroscience, School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85257, USA. Electronic address:
Methamphetamine (METH) use is associated with peripheral and brain inflammation that can contribute to METH-associated toxicity and heightened cue reactivity. However, the persistence of these phenomena, especially with regards to changes in brain proinflammatory cytokine levels, is not yet clear. In this study, we determined the effects of repeated binge-like METH self-administration (96-h/week for 3 weeks) followed by cued drug seeking for up to 60 days into abstinence in male and female rats.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAppl Environ Microbiol
January 2025
Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environment (ICBM), School of Mathematics and Science, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany.
Vitamin B (cobalamin, herein B) is a key cofactor for most organisms being involved in essential metabolic processes. In microbial communities, B is often scarce, largely because only few prokaryotes can synthesize B and are thus considered B-prototrophs. B-auxotrophy is mostly manifested by the absence of the B-independent methionine synthase, MetE.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntensive Care Med Exp
January 2025
Clinical Division and Laboratory of Intensive Care Medicine, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KU Leuven, Herestraat 49, O&N1 Box 503, 3000, Louvain, Belgium.
Background: Sepsis-induced cardiomyopathy (SICM) often occurs in the acute phase of sepsis and is associated with increased mortality due to cardiac dysfunction. The pathogenesis remains poorly understood, and no specific treatments are available. Although SICM is considered reversible, emerging evidence suggests potential long-term sequelae.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFToxicology
January 2025
School of Forensic Medicine, National Health Commission (NHC) Key Laboratory of Drug Addiction Medicine, Kunming Medical University, Kunming, Yunnan 650500, China. Electronic address:
Methamphetamine (METH), a synthetic stimulant, has seen an escalating abuse situation globally over the past decade. Although the molecular mechanism underlying METH-induced neurotoxicity has been explored, the dysfunction of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) neuroprotection in the context of METH neurotoxicity remains insufficiently understood. Our previous studies have found that METH induced neurotoxicity and BDNF expression in rat primary neurons, necessitating further research into this paradox.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Phys Chem A
January 2025
Department of NMR based Structural Biology, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, Am Faßberg 11, Göttingen 37077, Germany.
Theoretical and simulated analyses of selective homonuclear dipolar recoupling sequences serve as primary tools for understanding and determining the robustness of these sequences under various conditions. In this article, we investigate the recently proposed first-order dipolar recoupling sequence known as MODIST (Modest Offset Difference Internuclear Selective Transfer). We evaluate the MODIST transfer efficiency, assessing its dependence on rf-field strengths and the number of simulated spins, extending up to 10 spins.
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