Psychedelics, derived from the Greek words "psyche" (soul) and "deloun" (revealing), are substances historically and currently considered "soul-revealing". Also termed hallucinogens due to their impact on sensory perception, they are further categorized into hallucinogens, such as lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), psilocybin, and mescaline; entactogens or em...
Although psychedelic and hallucinogenic substances have gained popularity for therapeutic use, their dermatologic adverse effects are poorly characterized. This review characterizes the cutaneous reactions associated with psychedelic and hallucinogenic drugs. A review of PubMed and Scopus was conducted from the inception of databases to August 31, 2023. Sear...
A safe and productive workplace requires a sober workforce, free from substances that impair judgment and concentration. Although drug monitoring programs already exist, the scope and loopholes of standard workplace testing panels are well known, allowing other substances to remain a source of risk. Therefore, a high-throughput urine screening method for psi...
Recreational drug use is a significant public health concern in various countries. It is well understood that usage of psychedelics/hallucinogens, such as lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), ecstasy, phencyclidine (PCP), and psilocybin-containing mushrooms, has increased significantly over the last few decades, particularly in adolescents and young adults, yet...
In 1970, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration passed the Controlled Substances Act. This statute classified and banned a variety of drugs including psilocybin, the psychoactive component found in Psilocybe Cubensis (also known as "Magic Mushrooms"). Though psilocybin was known to possess many medical benefits and cause no serious side effects, t...
Pets can have accidental, intentional, or malicious exposure to illicit drugs. It is a growing concern over the last decade because there is an increase in usage of illicit drugs in humans and diagnosis is difficult. Owners are often not aware of exposure, or they are reluctant to admit possession of recreational drugs in the household due to potential legal...
BackgroundPsychedelics represent a unique subset of psychoactive substances that can induce an aberrant state of consciousness principally via the neuronal 5-HT2A receptor. There is limited knowledge concerning the interest in these chemicals in Poland and how they changed during the pandemic. Nonetheless, these interests can be surveyed indirectly via the w...
BackgroundDepression is a major mental health issue worldwide, with high rates of chronicity and non-recovery associated with the condition. Existing treatments such as antidepressant medication and psychological treatments have modest effectiveness, suggesting the need for alternative interventions.AimThe aim of this study was to examine the relationships b...
Hallucinogens include many different drugs, which are often called “psychedelic” drugs. The US National Institute on Drug Abuse categorizes these drugs into 2 categories: classic hallucinogens and dissociative drugs. Both types of psychedelics can lead to hallucinations - sensations and images that seem real although they are imaginary. In addition, an indiv...
Adolescence is a period of profound developmental changes, which run the gamut from behavioral and neural to physiological and hormonal. It is also a time at which there is an increased propensity to engage in risk-taking and impulsive behaviors like drug use. This review examines the human and preclinical literature on adolescent drug use and its consequenc...
The Microscope is publishing monographs from McCrone Research Institute’s A Modern Compendium of Microcrystal Tests for Illicit Drugs and Diverted Pharmaceuticals (4th revision: September 13, 2021), which contains 19 different drugs and their microcrystal test reagents. This issue includes the final installment of monographs, with the following drugs/reagent...
There has been growing clinical, public, and media awareness and concern about the availability and potential harmfulness of so-called 'legal highs', which are more appropriately called new or novel psychoactive substances (NPS). A cat-and-mouse process has emerged wherein unknown chemists and laboratories are producing new, and as yet nonproscribed, compoun...
Introduction and aimsSimultaneous polysubstance use (SPU) is a common phenomenon, yet little is known about its role in substance use initiation.Design and methodsIn the present study, 226 cannabis users completed structured interviews about their substance use history. For each substance ever used, participants provided details of their age of first use, th...
Mescaline, phencyclidine (PCP) and psilocybin are potent hallucinogenic drugs strongly affecting both human and animal behavior. However, these compounds have not been previously investigated in zebrafish (Danio rerio), rapidly gaining popularity as a model in psychopharmacology research. Here, we examine the effects of mescaline, PCP and psilocybin in multi...
Pharmacologic and toxic effects of xenobiotics, such as drugs of abuse, depend on the genotype and phenotype of an individual, and conversely on the isoenzymes involved in their metabolism and transport. The current knowledge of such isoenzymes of frequently abused therapeutics such as opioids (oxycodone, hydrocodone, methadone, fentanyl, buprenorphine, tram...
It has been observed that agents with agonist activity at 5-HT2A receptors prevent neurotoxicity induced by the non-competitive NMDA antagonist, dizocilpine (MK-801). Subsequent behavioral studies reported complete antagonism by LSD and DOM of the stimulus effects of the related NMDA antagonist, phencyclidine [PCP]. The present study sought to extend those o...
Although psilocybin has been trained in the rat as a discriminative stimulus, little is known of the pharmacological receptors essential for stimulus control. In the present investigation rats were trained with psilocybin and tests were then conducted employing a series of other hallucinogens and presumed antagonists. An intermediate degree of antagonism of ...
IntroductionPharmacological challenges with hallucinogens are used as models for psychosis in experimental research. The state induced by glutamate antagonists such as phencyclidine (PCP) is often considered as a more appropriate model of psychosis than the state induced by serotonergic hallucinogens such as lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), psilocybin and N...
Substance abuse is a major health and behavioral concern in college students. Alcohol and marijuana are the most commonly abused drugs on college campuses. Others include tobacco, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, gamma-hydroxybutyrate, flunitrazepam (Rohypnol), lysergic acid, ketamine, methamphetamine, phencyclidine, cocaine, and psilocybin mushrooms. This...
Driving under the influence of drugs is an issue of growing concern in the industrialized countries as a risk and a cause for road accidents. In forensic toxicology, the increasing number of samples for determination of drugs in blood is mainly due to zero-tolerance laws in several countries and well-trained police officers who can better recognize drivers u...
