Studies of Substituted Amphetamine Neurotoxicity

描述（由申请人提供）： 提交此修订后的高级科学家奖（K05）申请是为了使申请人能够在未来五年内继续从事药物滥用研究。申请人实验室的研究重点是取代苯丙胺衍生物（MDMA、甲基苯丙胺）及其选择性损害动物（可能还有人类）大脑血清素和/或多巴胺神经元的倾向。这项研究的长期目标是更好地确定人类接触替代安非他明的风险和后果，并进一步阐明血清素和多巴胺在中枢神经系统 (CNS) 中的健康和疾病作用。此外，这项研究旨在确定替代安非他明损害大脑胺能神经元的机制，因为这些信息可能有助于深入了解人类神经退行性疾病中神经元损失的过程。 可以使用多种方法来实现这些目标。对孤立系统（基因微阵列、突触体和培养细胞）和完整动物（啮齿动物）的研究探索了取代苯丙胺神经毒性的机制，确定了神经毒性表达的关键分子要求，并表征了血清素和多巴胺神经元对取代苯丙胺神经毒性的短期和长期反应。对非人类灵长类动物的研究旨在更准确地评估替代安非他明对人类造成的风险，并开发和验证检测替代安非他明对人类神经毒性后果的方法。人类研究包括分子 PET 成像、药理学挑战、神经精神评估、认知测试和多导睡眠图评估，旨在确定使用替代安非他明的人类是否会产生神经毒性，如果是，则确定功能性后果。 通过减少临床工作、教学、管理和其他部门职责所需的时间，该 K05 奖项将使申请人能够优化研究生产力，继续培训其实验室的初级教员和研究员，并参加旨在教育公众有关替代安非他明潜在神经毒性的国内和国际论坛。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This revised application for a Senior Scientist Award (K05) is submitted to enable the applicant to continue engaging in drug abuse research for the next five years. Research in the applicant's laboratory focuses on substituted amphetamine derivatives (MDMA, methamphetamine) and their propensity to selectively damage brain serotonin and/or dopamine neurons in animals and, possibly, humans. The long-term goals of this research are to better define risks and consequences of substituted amphetamine exposure in humans, and to further elucidate the role of serotonin and dopamine in the central nervous system (CNS), both in health and disease. In addition, this research seeks to identify the mechanism by which substituted amphetamines damage brain aminergic neurons, as this information may yield insight into the processes underlying neuronal loss in human neurodegenerative conditions. A variety of methods are used to achieve these goals. Studies in isolated systems (gene microarrays, synaptosomes and cultured cells) and intact animals (rodents) explore mechanisms of substituted amphetamine neurotoxicity, identify critical molecular requirements for the expression of neurotoxicity, and characterize the short- and long-term responses of serotonin and dopamine neurons to substituted amphetamine neurotoxicity. Studies in nonhuman primates seek to more accurately gauge the risk that substituted amphetamines pose to humans and to develop and validate methods for detecting the consequences of substituted amphetamine neurotoxicity in humans. Studies in humans, which include molecular PET imaging, pharmacologic challenges, neuropsychiatric evaluations, cognitive testing and polysomnographic evaluations, are designed to determine whether humans who use substituted amphetamines develop neurotoxicity and, if so, the functional consequences. By decreasing the amount of time required for clinical work, teaching, administration and other departmental duties, this K05 award will enable the applicant to optimize research productivity, continue training junior faculty and fellows in his laboratory, and participate in national and international forums intended to educate the public regarding the neurotoxic potential of substituted amphetamines.