STUDY HINTS ECSTASY MAY DAMAGE BRAIN

WASHINGTON - Partying with Ecstasy several times a night, a common practice
among users of the illegal drug, may damage key neurons in the brain and
perhaps hasten the onset of Parkinson's disease, according to a study in
monkeys.

But some researchers were skeptical that the results from the animal
studies translate to humans and said such studies discourage research that
might lead to medical uses for Ecstasy.

A Stanford University researcher injected squirrel monkeys and baboons with
three shots of Ecstasy, also known as MDMA, three hours apart, mimicking
dosages "often used by MDMA users at all-night dance parties." He said the
drug caused enduring damage to dopamine-producing neurons in the brains of
the animals.

The damage was still evident two to six weeks later, said Dr. George
Recaurte, the lead author of the study appearing this week in the journal
Science. But he said it's not clear if the damaged neurons will repair
themselves, a key factor in whether Ecstasy could cause Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease is a brain disorder triggered by the permanent loss of
dopamine-producing nerve cells.

"We already know from the literature that brain dopamine declines with
age," he said. "A young individual who sustains injury to these dopamine
cells and depletes their reserve may be at greater risk of Parkinsonism."

But Dr. Julia Holland, a psychiatrist on the faculty of the New York
University School of Medicine, said earlier studies on humans have failed
to show that Ecstasy causes permanent damage to dopamine neurons.

"It is a big leap to extrapolate what he is seeing in these primates and
what you expect to see in Parkinson's syndrome," said Holland, the author
of a book on the risk and recreational use of Ecstasy.

She said Ricaurte's research has helped "demonize" Ecstasy and prevented
studies to determine if the drug could be used to treat post traumatic
syndrome.

Dr. Alan Leshner, former head of the National Institute on Drug Abuse,
however, said the Ricaurte study shows "that even an occasional use of
Ecstasy can lead to significant damage to brain systems."

Stephen Kish, a University of Toronto researcher studying Parkinson's
disease and Ecstasy, said he analyzed the brain of a deceased habitual
Ecstasy user two years ago and found no evidence of dopamine neuron damage.

"Ricaurte's findings do raise a concern that Ecstasy may damage the
dopamine neurons and potentially cause Parkinson's," Kish said. But he
added that the current study "might not translate to humans" and hasn't
proved a clear connection between the drug and the brain disease.