Psychopharmacology
July 1, 2026
Sarah Ann Smith, Haseeb Mohammad, Lik Hang N Lee et al.
Interest in psychedelic drugs has increased rapidly because of their potential therapeutic role in psychiatric disorders. Impairments in the sociocognitive skills needed to build and maintain social relationships are prominent features of many psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders. Emerging evidence suggests that compounds such as 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), lysergic acid...
Psychiatry Research
May 12, 2026
Isis Lunsky, Gilmar Gutierrez, Xena Wang et al.
Postpartum Depression (PPD) is a common condition with serious consequences for both mother and baby if left untreated. Currently, few effective strategies exist for prevention of PPD. Ketamine and Esketamine are rapid acting and potent antidepressants, and emerging evidence is showing promising results for PPD. This review searched the MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases,...
Journal of Military Veteran and Family Health
February 1, 2026
Ian Stefanuk, Kaitlin Chivers-Wilson, Rakesh Jetly et al.
Introduction: Comorbid conditions such as major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, and posttraumatic stress disorder are common among Veterans, and the presence of multiple conditions requires innovative treatment approaches. The Newly Institute in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, has introduced a novel intervention combining sublingual ketamine therapy with a medically managed transdiagnostic...
European Psychiatry
2026
Shakila Meshkat, Qiaowei Lin, Rachel Sousa-Ho et al.
Abstract Background Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy has shown potential for psychiatric disorders. However, the magnitude of symptom change in control groups remains poorly understood. We aim to evaluate within-group effects in control groups and compare them to treatment groups in psychedelic trials. Methods A systematic search was conducted up to 1 July 2025. The study protocol was...
Psychiatry and Clinical Psychopharmacology
August 11, 2025
Reinhard Janssen-Aguilar, Shakila Meshkat, Huda Al-Shamali et al.
4 citations
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a severe, often difficult-to-treat condition, highlighting the need for innovative therapies. Interventional treatments, including neuromodulation, rapid-acting pharmacotherapies such as intravenous ketamine (IV-KET) and esketamine (ESK), and emerging psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies, offer promising solutions. This systematic review evaluates the...
Psychiatry and Clinical Psychopharmacology
August 11, 2025
Lisa Burback, Olga Winkler, Rakesh Jetly et al.
Traditional trauma-focused psychotherapies (TFPs) were developed based on an anxiety disorder model of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, PTSD is a more complex disorder with heterogeneous onset, presentation, trajectory, and treatment responsivity. As half of treated patients do not respond to first-line treatments, innovative therapies are emerging to improve outcomes. This...
Journal of Substance Use and Addiction Treatment
August 1, 2025
Reinhard Janssen-Aguilar, Shakila Meshkat, Ilya Demchenko et al.
12 citations
Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) involve diminished control, risky use, impaired social interactions, and physical dependence. Despite their global prevalence and burden, treatment options remain limited. Ketamine (KET), an NMDA receptor antagonist, may aid SUD treatment by modulating glutamatergic neurotransmission. This systematic review evaluates KET's role in SUD treatment. This review...
Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews
June 1, 2025
Shakila Meshkat, Gunjan Malik, Richard J. Zeifman et al.
11 citations
Psilocybin, a serotonergic psychedelic, may have therapeutic benefits for Substance Use Disorders (SUDs), but its overall efficacy and safety remain uncertain. This systematic review assessed the safety and efficacy of psilocybin for SUDs through a systematic database search conducted via OVID on May 22, 2024, and summarized 26 ongoing clinical trials registered on clinicaltrials.gov. Among 16...
Scientific Reports
May 26, 2025
Zitong Wang, Brett Robbins, Ryan Zhuang et al.
4 citations
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of disability that affects over 300 million people globally. Despite multiple antidepressant trials, approximately one-third of MDD patients remain symptomatic, progressing to treatment-resistant depression (TRD). This persistence possibly is due to the multifaceted etiology of TRD, encompassing biological, psychological, and environmental...
Research Square
May 6, 2025
Zitong Wang, Brett Robbins, Ryan Zhuang et al.
Abstract Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of disability that affects over 300 million people globally. Despite multiple antidepressant trials, approximately one-third of MDD patients remain symptomatic, progressing to treatment-resistant depression (TRD). This persistence possibly is due to the multifaceted etiology of TRD, encompassing biological, psychological, and...
Psychedelic Medicine
April 28, 2025
Shakila Meshkat, Howell Fang, Rachel Sousa-Ho et al.
Introduction: High-dose psilocybin has shown potential in treating various psychiatric disorders, but its perceptual and cognitive effects, along with the risk of adverse events, highlight the need for alternative treatment approaches. One such approach is the use of low-dose psilocybin, which does not significantly alter cognition or perception. While low-dose psilocybin has garnered growing...
Pharmaceutics
March 25, 2025
Shakila Meshkat, Huda Al-Shamali, Argyrios Perivolaris et al.
22 citations
Background: Psilocybin has shown promise in therapeutic applications for mental disorders. Understanding the pharmacokinetics of psilocybin and its active metabolite psilocin is crucial for optimizing its clinical use and minimizing adverse effects. Methods: This systematic review involved a comprehensive search across MEDLINE, APA PsycINFO, and Embase databases, from inception to December...
Journal of Clinical Medicine
February 20, 2025
Shakila Meshkat, Taha Malik, Jennifer Swainson et al.
3 citations
Background/Objectives: Suicide accounts for 1.4% of global deaths, and the slow-acting nature of traditional treatments for suicide risk underscores the need for alternatives. Psychedelic therapies may rapidly reduce suicide risk. This systematic review evaluates impact of psychedelic therapies on suicide-related outcomes. Methods: A systematic search of MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, and...
The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology
February 1, 2025
Zitong Wang, Yanbo Zhang, Xin-Min Li
Abstract Background Dr. George Engel introduced the biopsychosocial model into the field of psychiatry 40 years ago, highlighting the profound connection between social environment and mental health. Factors have been categorized into biological, psychological, and socio-environmental domains. Numerous animal models have been developed to investigate the pathophysiology and treatment of...
Progress in Neuro-psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry
2025
Zitong Wang, Brett Robbins, Ryan Zhuang et al.
15 citations
Chronic stress exerts profound effects on mental health, contributing to disorders such as depression, anxiety, and cognitive impairment. This study examines the potential of psilocybin to alleviate behavioral despair and cognitive deficits in a rodent model of chronic stress, focusing on the interplay between the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis and the Endocannabinoid System (ECS)....
Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences
October 1, 2024
Shakila Meshkat, Fatemeh Gholaminezhad, Eric Vermetten et al.
24 citations
Psilocybin is a classic psychedelic with demonstrated preliminary clinical efficacy in a range of psychiatric disorders. Evaluating the impact of psilocybin on cognitive function is essential to unravel its potential benefits and risks. In this systematic review, we assessed psilocybin's effect on cognitive function through a comprehensive search of electronic databases from inception to...
PLoS One
July 29, 2024
Sarah Ann Smith, Shaina Smith, Liz Dennett et al.
3 citations
BACKGROUND: Impairments in social cognition are known to be a key factor in several psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders. Interest in psychedelic drugs has increased in recent years, with significant research identifying psychedelic and hallucinogenic drugs as modulators of social cognition. However, more research is necessary before psychedelics are implemented in clinical settings as...
Frontiers in Psychiatry
May 14, 2024
Zijia Yu, Lisa Burback, Olga Winkler et al.
38 citations
Intense interest surrounds current research on psychedelics, particularly regarding their potential in treating mental health disorders. Various studies suggest a link between the subjective effects produced by psychedelics and their therapeutic efficacy. Neuroimaging evidence indicates an association of changes in brain functional connectivity with the subjective effects of psychedelics. We...
Scientific Reports
February 22, 2024
Ethan V Hagen, Melike Schalomon, Yanbo Zhang et al.
11 citations
The therapeutic use of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) has resurfaced in the last decade, prompting further scientific investigation into its effectiveness in many animal models. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) are a popular model organism in medical sciences and are used to examine the repeated administration of pharmacological compounds. Previous zebrafish research found acute LSD altered behaviour...