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New class of hallucinogens: GABA‐enhancing agents
Author(s) -
Hollister Leo E.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
drug development research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.582
H-Index - 60
eISSN - 1098-2299
pISSN - 0272-4391
DOI - 10.1002/ddr.430210311
Subject(s) - hallucinogen , phencyclidine , schizophrenia (object oriented programming) , muscimol , neuroscience , psychology , pharmacology , mechanism of action , nmda receptor , mechanism (biology) , gabaa receptor , receptor , chemistry , medicine , psychiatry , biochemistry , philosophy , epistemology , in vitro
Hallucinogenic drugs are of interest to psychiatrists as possible models of schizophrenia. Possibly some of the mechanisms by which these drugs elicit altered mental states might lead to a better understanding of schizophrenia. GABA‐enhancing drugs, such as muscimol and CI‐966, produce mental states that differ in various ways from those of other hallucinogens. The mechanism of action also differs from the others, which may be mediated by receptors for serotonin (LSD), acetylcholine (scopolamine), or NMDA (phencyclidine). Whether the GABA A receptor will provide clues to schizophrenia remains to be elucidated.