Effects of ibogaine, and cocaine and morphine after ibogaine, on ventral tegmental dopamine neurons.
Life sciences January 1, 1996 E D French, K Dillon, S F Ali 12 citations
Ibogaine, a plant-derived alkaloid, acutely excites dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) of anesthetized rats, but this effect is not long-lasting. Pretreatment with ibogaine 6-8 hours or 19 hours before testing did not alter the spontaneous firing of VTA dopamine neurons or their response to morphine or cocaine. Because ibogaine's excitatory effect on these neurons is transient and does not persistently change how dopamine neurons respond to these drugs, other mechanisms must explain its proposed antiaddictive properties.