Some distorted thoughts about ketamine as a psychedelic and a novel hypothesis based on NMDA receptor-mediated synaptic plasticity.

We report that ketamine inhibits STP in a double sigmoidal fashion with low (40 nM) and high (5.6 μM) IC50 values. In contrast, ketamine inhibits LTP in a single sigmoidal manner (IC50 value ∼ 15 μM). A GluN2D-subunit preferring NMDA receptor antagonist, UBP145, has a similar pharmacological profile. We propose that the psychedelic effects of ketamine may involve the inhibition of STP and, potentially, associated forms of working memory.
PMID: 29885421 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Source: Neuropharmacology - June 6, 2018 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Authors: Ingram R, Kang H, Lightman S, Jane DE, Bortolotto ZA, Collingridge GL, Lodge D, Volianskis A Tags: Neuropharmacology Source Type: research