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Ritalin, the drug which is being prescribed to ADHD children, seems to have the same long-term effect on the brain as other stimulating substances, such as amphetamine and cocaine. Those results were revealed at the annual congress of the Society for Neuroscience.
Researchers at the Buffalo University have determined that the use of the Ritalin drug leads to changes in the brain’s functioning, which persist long after the treatment has been suspended.
“Doctors prescribe the drug, supposing it disappears from the body as soon as it has worn off,” according to Joan Baizer, professor in physiology and biophysics and research manager.
Baizer emphasizes that Ritalin is highly effective and wholesome to the user. “The medicine seems safe as long as it is being used correctly.” However, since Ritalin is taken daily for many years on end, the professor claims that its effect on the brain should be investigated more thoroughly.
Previous research on the effects of amphetamines and cocaine has demonstrated that those substances activate ‘immediate early genes’ in certain brain cells. That leads to changes in the brain cells’ functioning. An example of such genes is c-fos. Amphetamines and cocaine activate c-fos in the stratium, the part of the brain which is important for movements and motivation. Since addictions come about in the stratium, scientists examined whether Ritalin enables c-fos there as well.
The researchers fed rats with sweet milk, containing the same dose of Ritalin, as is administered to children. After 90 minutes, the period during which c-fos is released in the brain cells, the c-fos activity in the rats’ brains had increased immensely, which was not the case with the control group. ‘Those data suggest that Ritalin affects the functioning of the brain longer,’ according to Baizer. A next phase in the research might be the use of microarray technology so as to determine which genes are being activated by Ritalin in the short and long term.
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