The chemical structure of the drug, invented and patented by the pharmaceutical giant Merck in 1912, had long been in the public domain.

There's excitement and controversy swirling around the potential use of MDMA for treating post-traumatic stress disorder. On Tuesday, a panel of advisers to the FDA will evaluate the data.

MDMA — the chemical found in the drug ecstasy — has appeared effective for treating PTSD in clinical trials. But there are concerns about the quality of the research.

A toxic chemical that can cause kidney failure and death has been detected in white powder, presumed to be MDMA, in the Wellington region.

While not a classical psychedelic in terms of its chemical structure or effects, MDMA-assisted therapy is closely modeled on earlier work with LSD, mescaline, and psilocybin, the main psychoactive ...

The chemical structure and the effects of MDMA are similar to amphetamine (a stimulant) and to mescaline (a hallucinogen), according to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH).