The Role of Agonist of A2A Adenosine Receptors on Neurotoxicity of MDMA (Ecstasy Pill) on Rat's Hippocampus

MDMA is a synthetic drug that is originated from Amphetamine. It is used by some people. This material induces some chemical changes in serotonergic and dopaminergic neurons in middle brain. In this study, we used 49 Rats Sprague-Dawley, 200-250 gr. There were 7 groups and 7 Rats in each group. Rats received MDMA in the first group, in the second group CGS (A2A receptor agonist), in the third group SCH (A2A receptor Antagonist), group 4 vehicle for CGS and SCH, group5 vehicle for ecstasy, in 6th group MDMA with CGS, in 7th group MDMA with SCH. All groups received drugs ip, daily for 7 days. Then we took out some Hippocampus samples after perfusion in order to investigate apoptosis.These samples were stained with tunnel kit, and studied by light microscope. In some other rats, we removed fresh tissue and studied the expression of BAX and BCL-2 proteins by western blotting. The results of this study showed that the usage of MDMA with CGS reduced the BAX protein expression and protected apoptosis of Hippocampus cells. The usage of MDMA with SCH increased the BAX protein expression and number of apoptotic Hippocampus cells. The results of our study indicated that CGS with MDMA decreased the side effects of the usage of MDMA.