Psychedelics are increasingly described as a new therapeutic approach in a variety of mental disorders including depression. Oral psychedelics such as psilocybin have an acute effect evolving over 6-8 h and are generally given in combination with psychological support. There is debate on the exact role of this support and how and by whom it should be deliver...
BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Australia recently down-scheduled and authorised psychedelic-assisted therapies, including psilocybin, for certain mental health conditions. Evidence is emerging for potential application in substance use disorder treatment. However, regulatory developments have outpaced implementation readiness. While service leaders and clinicians are ...
CONTEXT: People living with serious illness frequently experience intense existential suffering related to awareness of finitude. Psychedelic-assisted therapies have been associated with reductions in death anxiety and existential distress, yet the experiential processes underlying transformations in the relationship with finitude remain insufficiently under...
This Phase 2a pilot, exploratory, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group trial will estimate whether concurrent fluoxetine alters the antidepressant effect, acute psychedelic experience, or safety of a psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy session in adults with treatment-resistant major depressive disorder (TRD). Eligible participants (ag...
Abstract Adolescent refractory mental health disorders are rising globally, contributing to long-term morbidity and substantial societal burden. Conventional psychotropic medications and psychotherapeutic approaches sometimes fail to provide adequate relief, necessitating an interest in novel investigational interventions. Classic psychedelic compounds-Psilo...
Background: Psilocybin-assisted therapy (PAT) has shown promise for alcohol use disorder (AUD) in randomized controlled trials (RCTs). However, the effects of open-label administration following blinded treatment are unclear. Here, we present safety and efficacy data from an open-label extension of a Phase II RCT (NCT02061293) examining PAT for AUD. Methods:...
Uncovering the neural basis of psychedelics’ potent effects on brain activity and conscious experience has great potential for understanding their therapeutic effects. Numerous studies using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) uncovered a strong effect of psychedelics on global properties of fMRI signal, but how they map to underlying neural phenome...
Background/Objectives: Psilocybin has re-emerged as a promising intervention for neuropsychiatric disorders including major depressive disorder, treatment-resistant depression, anxiety associated with life-threatening illness, obsessive compulsive disorder, and substance use disorders. However, conventional randomized controlled trials (RCTs)-the current gol...
Psychedelic experiences are frequently described as producing a “psychological reset,”characterized by reduced rigidity of thought and disruption of maladaptive cognitive pat-terns. Existing models such as REBUS and the entropic brain hypothesis explain acutedestabilization but do not fully account for post-experience reconstruction. This paper pro-poses a t...
The goal of this clinical trial is to systematically categorize potential prohedonic effects of psilocybin in patients with anhedonia in depression. The main questions it aims to answer are: Primary Objectives 1. Systematically categorize prohedonic effects (antianhedonic effects in patients with anhedonia in depression, increase in well-being in all partici...
Psilocybin, chemically known as (4-phosphoryloxy-N, N-dimethyltryptamine, 4-PODMT), is derived from the psychoactive mushroom genus, Psilocybe. Of the four active metabolites, psilocin readily enters systemic circulation. The psychoactive effects of psilocin are thought to arise through partial agonist effects at the 5-HT2A receptor. Psychedelic drugs, inclu...
INTRODUCTION: After decades of regulatory marginalization, psychedelic compounds have reemerged as promising therapeutic tools in psychiatry, driven by unmet clinical needs in treatment-resistant mental disorders and by growing evidence of rapid and sustained effects on mood, cognition, and behavior. AREAS COVERED: This narrative review critically examined t...
Serotonergic psychedelics have attracted considerable interest as promising therapeutic agents. However, the molecular mechanisms linking their acute hallucinogenic-like effects to longer-lasting neuroplastic responses remain incompletely understood, partly because of the scarcity of native neural models suitable for mechanistic studies. Here, we developed a...
While the limitations of existing treatment options have spurred investigations into the applicability of psychedelic therapies for chronic and treatment-resistant psychological disorders, there remain significant unresolved issues pertaining to how these treatments should be regulated and the implementation of an ethical framework for their widespread deliv...
Background Following Australia’s landmark 2023 decision to approve psilocybin and MDMA for clinical use, psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) is beginning to emerge within regulated mental health settings. This study investigates psychologists’ views on the relevance of psychedelic therapists’ lived-living experience (LLE) with psychedelics. While discussion a...
Psychedelic drugs produce effects on the mind that manifest as an apparent expansion of consciousness often accompanied by hallucinations. Psychedelics, which act as agonists at serotonin 5-HT2A receptors in the brain, include psilocybin, 5-methoxydimethyltryptamine, and N,N-dimethyltryptamine (tryptamine derivatives), mescaline (a phenethylamine derivative)...
PRE-EMPT will assemble a study group of 150 civilian and Veteran participants from three populations (low risk, intermediate risk, and high risk for self-harm). The investigators will obtain clinical assessments, MRI, and blood levels for circular RNA (circRNA). The teams will then administer three interventions (neurofeedback, transcranial magnetic stimulat...
Psilocybin, N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) are psychedelic compounds with therapeutic potential for depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress. However, their relevance to endurance athletes, who face particular psychological and physical stressors, remains underexplored. This ...
