Use of ecstasy, possibly together with cannabis, may cause cognitive decline in healthy young people. An impairment of working memory might underlie declines in various task performances. The cognitive disturbance likely relates to ecstasy's neurotoxic potential, and even typical recreational doses appear sufficient to cause neurotoxicity in humans.
Two classes of hallucinogenic drugs model different aspects of schizophrenia-like symptoms. In a double-blind crossover study, fifteen healthy volunteers received both the serotonin 5-HT2A agonist DMT and the glutamate NMDA antagonist (S)-ketamine. Nine subjects completed both sessions. DMT produced stronger positive symptoms resembling schizophrenia, such as formal thought disorder and inappropriate affect. (S)-ketamine produced stronger negative symptoms, attention deficits, body perception disturbances, and catatonia-like motor phenomena. The findings suggest neither drug model is overall superior; rather, each models distinct symptom profiles: DMT models paranoid-type psychoses, while (S)-ketamine models psychoses with prominent negative and catatonic features.