This study coming from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore was billed as one of the most dramatic warnings clubbing world has ever received over the dangers of extremely popular then drug. It concluded that whoever takes just one or two tablets for the evening risk long-term damage to the brain, which could culminate in developing Parkinson’s disease later in life.

Published in respected journal Science this study had a profound impact on doctors who talked of a ‘neurological time bomb’ facing users and politicians who demanded tighter anti-rave laws to deal with it. Not to mention Daily Mail and other UK tabloids hysteria about ‘killer drug’ ready to wipe out the generations. And the tough laws duly followed with the introduction of Anti-Rave Act in America and severe punishment for users in UK.

Ironically this entire storm came to embarrassing end when scientists involved failed to replicate their findings.
As it eventually transpired, it was a case of terrible scientific blunder and incorrect labelling on two laboratory bottles. The monkeys were in fact injected with doses of methamphetamine or speed, which is universally known to affect the body’s dopamine system. What followed next was retraction of the original study by Science and humiliation in academic circles for John Hopkins University, which received heavy research funding from US government and drug companies.

The laws have not been changed though and UK authorities refuted any attempts to downgrade ecstasy to class B so far.

Reputation of it being a ‘killer’ was however discredited in 2004 by Professor David Nutt who was at the time senior member of government advisory panel. “Ecstasy is not a class A drug. It shouldn’t be“…”After 15 dizzy years in the mainstream, ecstasy is unquestionably non-addictive, and appears to be relatively safe in the short term"…In fact, though the authorities prefer not to make the comparison, roughly 20 deaths a year ranks ecstasy alongside electric blankets in a list of Britain's biggest killers. As each year goes by, I get relatively more sanguine about the risks, rather than less," he said in his advice to the home affairs select committee.

Yet it is not safe to use it, especially when you don’t know the contents and for all the legal aspects and consequences it remains a class A drug.

But somehow MDMA makes a quiet comeback to clinical surgeries in USA being used to treat post traumatic stress disorder – approved for medical trials by DEA and USA Food and Drug Administration.

It doesn’t come as a total surprise to medical profession because MDMA was long known to possess therapeutic qualities and in late 70s and early 80s lived a thriving clinical life in America as a tool for forming bonds of trust between psychotherapists and their patients (especially on the West Coast). It was brought up to wider public attention by experiments of Dr. Alexander Shulgin who recommended it for use in therapy sessions. Only after it gained notoriety and popularity in the early 80s in Los Angeles it was banned by DEA in a move that was soon to be followed by Thatcher's Britain.
The rest is a well-known history.
But now in the ironic echo of Ricaurte failed experiment scientists from Duke University in America are reporting that MDMA more than the other amphetamine related drugs has been shown to reduce symptoms of Parkinson’s in mice. The study published in the open access journal Public Library of Science Biology also found out that MDMA acted through a pathway not related to common neurotransmitters like serotonin or norepinephrine.

“Future work will be required to understand how MDMA was able to ameliorate the symptoms of Parkinson's in these mice and to assess the toxicity of MDMA and related compounds in greater detail in the future. However, this study opens the door to a search for compounds related to ecstasy, which may provide a more effective treatment in the later stages of the disease - and hopefully allow patients to perform the simple functions of everyday life independently again. “

Is that a new future for the banned drug?
Only time will tell

Similar results were reported in UK study by Jonathan Brotchie and team at the University of Manchester but never given wider publicity due to the unfortunate timing of the report.
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