Assessment of the Adverse Effects of Methylone in Male and Female Sprague-Dawley Rats: Conditioned Taste Avoidance, Body Temperature and Activity/Stereotypies

Methylone’s rewarding effects have been well characterized while little is known about its adverse effects and how they may be impacted by sex. The present study investigated the adverse effects of the synthetic cathinone methylone in male and female Sprague-Dawley rats as assessed by conditioned taste avoidance and changes in temperature and in activity/stereotypies. Like other synthetic cathinones, methylone induced significant taste avoidance, temperature changes and increased activity/stereotypies in both males and females. The only endpoint for which sex was a factor in an interaction with methylone was in activity with males displaying a faster onset and females displaying a longer duration. When independent statistical assessments were made for each sex, differences between males and females were evident. Considering sex as a biological variable in the study of drugs is necessary to determine if differences exist and, if evident, the basis for these differences.