Glutamate has become a candidate for treatment focus because glutamate blocks some NMDA receptors which, on their own, induce schizophrenic behavior. In animal models, NMDA antagonists increase glutamate release in the prefrontal cortex. It is postulated that this is a homeostatic response to NMDA receptor blockade, which in turn increases psychotic symptoms. A class of NMDA receptor antagonists have been denoted dissociative anesthetics because they produce a sense of depersonalization and dissociation of subjective experience from various forms of sensory input stimuli. As such, variants such as Ketamine (Angel Dust/Special K) and Phencyclidine (PCP) have become a commonly abused street-drug. These drugs are no longer used due to harmful behavioral and addictive effects.
