TY - JOUR
T1 - NMDA receptor function and human cognition
T2 - The effects of ketamine in healthy volunteers
AU - Malhotra, Anil K.
AU - Pinals, Debra A.
AU - Weingartner, Herbert
AU - Sirocco, Karen
AU - Missar, C. David
AU - Pickar, David
AU - Breier, Alan
PY - 1996/5
Y1 - 1996/5
N2 - A rapidly growing body of preclinical data has implicated the glutamatergic N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor in memory and other cognitive processes. There is comparatively less information about this receptor system in human cognition. We examined the effects of subanesthetic doses of ketamine, a noncompetitive NMDA receptor antagonist, on two forms of memory, free recall and recognition, as well as attention and behavior in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, 1-hour infusion in 15 healthy volunteers. Ketamine produced decrements in free recall, recognition memory, and attention. In addition, ketamine induced a brief psychosis in our healthy volunteers marked by thought disorder and withdrawal-retardation. Ketamine-induced memory impairments were not accounted for by changes in subject's attention and were not significantly related to psychosis ratings. These data suggest that the NMDA receptor plays a direct role in two types of explicit memory. The implications of these data for the pathophysiology of schizophrenia are discussed.
AB - A rapidly growing body of preclinical data has implicated the glutamatergic N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor in memory and other cognitive processes. There is comparatively less information about this receptor system in human cognition. We examined the effects of subanesthetic doses of ketamine, a noncompetitive NMDA receptor antagonist, on two forms of memory, free recall and recognition, as well as attention and behavior in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, 1-hour infusion in 15 healthy volunteers. Ketamine produced decrements in free recall, recognition memory, and attention. In addition, ketamine induced a brief psychosis in our healthy volunteers marked by thought disorder and withdrawal-retardation. Ketamine-induced memory impairments were not accounted for by changes in subject's attention and were not significantly related to psychosis ratings. These data suggest that the NMDA receptor plays a direct role in two types of explicit memory. The implications of these data for the pathophysiology of schizophrenia are discussed.
KW - Cognition
KW - Ketamine
KW - Memory
KW - Psychotic disorders
KW - Receptors, glutamate
KW - Receptors, N-methyl-d-aspartate
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0029927565&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0029927565&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/0893-133X(95)00137-3
DO - 10.1016/0893-133X(95)00137-3
M3 - Article
C2 - 8703299
AN - SCOPUS:0029927565
VL - 14
SP - 301
EP - 307
JO - Neuropsychopharmacology
JF - Neuropsychopharmacology
SN - 0893-133X
IS - 5
ER -