Effects of pharmacologically induced changes in NMDA-receptor activity on long-term memory in humans.
In a double-blind crossover design, either 30 mg of the noncompetitive NMDA-receptor antagonist memantine or a placebo was administered to 40 healthy male volunteers. Twenty line drawings of objects and 20 photographs of unfamiliar faces were presented on a computer screen. After a retention interval of 80 min, the participants' task was to select the original objects and faces from a set of 80 items. Results were analyzed applying a signal-detection-theory approach. Recognition performance for objects was significantly impaired under memantine as compared to placebo, whereas performance on face recognition was not affected. Findings support the notion of differential effects of NMDA-receptor antagonists on memory functions in humans.
Rammsayer
T H
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Georg Elias Mueller Institute for Psychology, University of Göttingen, D-37073 Göttingen, Germany. trammsa@uni-goettingen.de
D000328:Adult; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005145:Face; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008559:Memantine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology*; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology*
D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate; D008559:Memantine