LSD

LSD The psychedelic effects of d-Lysergic Acid Diethylamide-25 (LSD) were discovered by Dr. Albert Hoffman by accident in 1938. In the 1950s and 1960s, LSD was used by psychiatrists for analytic psychotherapy. It was thought that the administration of LSD could aid the patient in releasing repressed material. It was also suggested that psychiatrists themselves might develop more insight into the pathology of a diseased mind through self experimentation. 1,2 During the late 60s, LSD became popular as a recreational drug. While it has been suggested that recreational use of the drug has dropped, a recent report on CNN claimed that 4.4% of 8th graders have tried it. LSD is considered to be one of, if not the, most potent hallucinogenic drug known. Small doses of LSD (1/2 - 2 ug/kg body weight) result in a number of system wide effects that could be classified into somatic, psychological, cognitive, and perceptual categories. These effects can last between 5 and 14 hours. Table 1: Effects of LSD 1, 2, 3 Somatic Psychological Cognitive Perceptual mydriasis hallucinations disturbed thought processes increased stimulus from environment hyperglycemia depersonalization difficulty expressing thoughts changes in shape/color hyperthermia reliving of repressed memories impairment of reasoning synaesthesia (running together 1.(1995): "FAQ-LSD" From internet newsgroup: alt.drugs.psychedelics 2.Sankar (1975): "LSD: A Total Study" 3.Ashton H (1987): "Brain Systems Disorders and Psychotropic Drugs" 4.Snyder (1986): "Drugs and the Brain" Sci Am Books Inc. From FAQ-LSD 5.Nicholls J, Martin R, Wallace B (1992): "From Neuron to Brain: Acellular andMolecular Approach to the Function of the Nervous System" 6.Aghajanian GK(1980): "Mescaline and LSD Facilitate the Activation of Locus Coeruleus Neurons by Peripheral Stimulation" Brain Res 186:492-496 7.Jacobs, B (1985): "An Overview of Brain Serotonergic Unit Activity and its Relevance to the Neuropharmacology of Serotonin." From: Green, A: Neuropharmacology of Serotonin 8.Jacobs, B, Trulson M, Heym J, (1981): "Dissociations Between the Effects of Hallucinogenic Drugs on Behavior and Raphe Unit Activity in Freely Moving Cats" Brain Res 215:275-293 9.Pierce P, Peroutka S (1990): "Antagonist Properties of d-LSD at 5-Hydroxytryptamine2 Receptors". Neuropsychopharmacolgy 3(5-6):509-517 10.Moret C (1985): "Pharmacology of the Serotonin Autoreceptor" From: Green, A: Neuropharmacology of Serotonin 11.Glennon R (1990): "Do Classical Hallucinogens Act as 5-HT2 Agonists or Antagonists'" Neuropsychopharmacolgy 3(5-6):509-517 12.Green R, Heal D (1985): "The Effects of Drugs on Serotonin Mediated Behavioral Models" From Green, A: Neuropharmacology of Serotonin 13.Leysen J (1985): "Characterization of serotonin receptor binding sites" From Green, A: Neuropharmacology of Serotonin 14.Borne R. (1994) "Serotonin: The Neurotransmitter for the 90’s" URL: http://www.fairlite.com/ocd/artiles/ser90.shtml. From: Drug Topics Oct, 10 1994:108