For more information, contact George Stamatis, 216-368-3635 or gxs18@po.cwru.edu.

International team will study effects of ecstasy on fetus

CLEVELAND -- Use of the drug MDMA, more commonly known as "ecstasy," is widespread among young adults throughout Europe and is increasing in popularity among young people in the United States. MDMA is a synthetic, psychoactive drug with both stimulant (amphetamine-like) and hallucinogenic (LSD-like) properties. Other street names for it include Adam, XTC, hug, beans, and love drug.

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University's School of Medicine and University Hospitals of Cleveland have received $2.5 million over five years from the National Institutes of Health for a first-of-its-kind study. The project will examine the long-term effects of ecstasy exposure on a developing fetus, as well as the physical and psychological effects ecstasy can have on a mother, which in turn may have consequences on her child-rearing abilities.

The principal investigator is Lynn Singer, professor of pediatrics at CWRU and UHC. She and her colleagues in Cleveland will collaborate with researchers from the University of East London in Great Britain, who have developed an international reputation for studies of ecstasy effects on adults.

"Although ecstasy is widely used in Europe, and is the fastest-growing drug used among teenagers in the United States, we know nothing about its effects on the fetus," said Singer. "Many people believe it's a 'safe' drug, but it has demonstrably adverse effects on memory in adults who use it, and the first study on rats exposed to ecstasy in utero found spatial learning to be affected in the offspring."

In addition to documenting a range of infant outcomes, the study aims to assess environmental and maternal psychological factors on ecstasy-exposed children. The study will examine 150 infants (75 who have been exposed to the drug, and 75 who have not been exposed to the drug) and their mothers. Researchers will measure the children for growth, cognitive, motor, language, and behavioral outcomes at one month, four months, 12 months, 18 months, and 24 months.

"Ecstasy is often used in combination with other drugs, like alcohol and marijuana, perhaps worsening any negative effects ecstasy produces," Singer said. "As women of child-bearing age are more likely to use both legal and illegal drugs, it is essential that we determine the effects on the baby, since drug use is often not curtailed until after pregnancy is discovered, too late to prevent first-trimester exposure."

The co-principal investigator of the study is Andy Parrott, a professor in the School of Psychology at the University of East London. Parrott was among the first researchers to demonstrate cognitive/memory impairments in regular ecstasy users, and he organized an international conference on MDMA's neurotoxic effects held last year.

"Here at the University of East London, we have undertaken many studies of young adults who use ecstasy/MDMA, and have found a range of memory and other psychobiological impairments," Parrott said.

Also leading the research effort at the University of East London will be developmental psychologists Derek Moore and Julia Goodwin, who have many years of experience researching the developmental progression of "at-risk" populations of babies in the United Kingdom. They have established an excellent developmental laboratory in the psychology department at East London, making them ideally equipped to undertake this new prospective study of mothers who take MDMA during pregnancy, and their babies.

Another key researcher at East London is John Turner, an expert on the effects of MDMA on neuro-physiology. He has undertaken many studies into the cognitive and psychophysiological changes displayed by abstinent ecstasy users.

Other CWRU researchers on the project are Robert Arendt and Henry Kirchner, both with the Department of Pediatrics at Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital, and Kathleen Farkas of the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences.

"It is a great honor to be working with Professor Lynn Singer, Dr. Robert Arendt, and the rest of the team from Case Western Reserve University. They are world-renowned for their pioneering studies of cocaine-using mothers and their children," said Parrott.

"The CWRU/UHC proposal to the National Institute on Drug Abuse was significantly strengthened by our ability to collaborate with Professor Andy Parrott and his research group, who are among the foremost experts on ecstasy," Singer said.