2023-12-11 21:00:00
According to Le Monde, the recreational use of ketamine (a drug which produces a feeling of detachment, dissociation) has grown in France. A recent study from Columbia University in the United States, published in the scientific journal Cell Reports, demonstrates that repeated use of ketamine can cause significant changes in the brain’s dopamine system. The site Vicewhich includes the results of this study, specifies that dopamine is a neurotransmitter that influences our thinking and the way we feel pleasure.
The team of Columbia scientists used high-resolution imaging to map the brain of a mouse that received doses of ketamine for one, five and ten days. It was following ten days that structural changes in the dopaminergic system were observed. These results prove that the use of ketamine has serious consequences on the brain, but might also have advantages from a medical point of view. “The findings might also explain why ketamine might help people with eating disorders, by increasing the number of dopamine neurons in the hypothalamus, which regulates metabolism. They might also help scientists understand why excessive use of ketamine can lead to schizophrenia-like symptoms.develops Vice.
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One drug, many effects
Raju Tomer, one of the authors of the study, explains the results of this scientific work in more detail. “To our great surprise, following ten days, we saw a broad impact, and this impact was divergent – it was different in different parts of the brain”, he explains. Indeed, the same drug has the effect of reducing or increasing the number of dopaminergic neurons: everything depended on the area of the brain affected. Additionally, the dopamine system is connected throughout the brain “and we saw differential changes”expose Raju Tomer. “We saw an increase in connections with the prefrontal cortex, which is involved in higher-order cognitive functions. We saw a decrease in connections in the sensory part of the brain, the sensory cortex, which includes visual and auditory functions.continues the scientist.
The study results therefore suggest that some sort of ketamine treatment, targeting a specific part of the brain, might be helpful. “Depending on the mental health issue, it may be more important to interact with or correct certain areas”, says Raju Tomer. Currently, techniques are being developed to allow drugs to be administered in a targeted manner. Although these trials are still in their early stages, in the future doctors should have these types of approaches and may be able to use ketamine for medical purposes.
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