Give an octopus a little MDMA and the usually solitary creature will open right up. That's according to research published today in Current Biology.
In the study, Johns Hopkins Medical researchers gave MDMA—a drug more commonly known as ecstasy—to a group of California two-spot octopuses. The genome of that octopus is well understood, making it an ideal study.
"IT'S REALLY HARD TO DISMISS THAT WITH AN OCTOPUS BECAUSE THEY'RE PRETTY SMART."
As it turns out, octopuses—and virtually every animal on Earth, save ants and honeybees—have a specific serotonin transporter. In humans, this transporter regulates mood and, when exposed to MDMA, loosens social inhibitions—part of why ecstasy is so popular as a party drug. It's believed to also serve a role in social functioning.
