Nature Communications
August 27, 2026
Chenchen Song, Tinya Chang, Tobias Buchborn et al.
Psilocybin, a psychoactive compound contained in certain mushrooms, can provoke profound psychedelic experiences and also exerts established and controversial therapeutic efficacy in clinical depression and other neuropsychiatric conditions respectively. Here we report that a single systemic administration of the serotonergic psychedelic psilocybin can durably promote social behaviour in the...
Research Square
March 31, 2026
Marcus W. Meinhardt, Ivan Skorodumov, Florian Walter et al.
Abstract Alcohol use disorder is a major global health problem, and current treatments often fail to produce lasting reductions in harmful drinking1,2. Psychedelic-assisted therapies may promote durable behavioural change by enhancing brain plasticity during emotionally meaningful experiences, but progress has been limited by a lack of experimental models that capture these context-dependent...
Acta Neuropsychiatrica
September 3, 2025
Filipe Reis Teodoro Andrade, Tobias Buchborn, Gabriel Thalheimer et al.
3 citations
Abstract Background: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a significant public health concern, and current treatments often have limitations in effectiveness and adherence. Psilocybin, a psychedelic compound found in certain mushrooms, is being explored as a potential treatment for depression. It primarily acts through the serotonin 5-HT2A receptor but interacts with 5-HT1A and 5-HT2C receptors....
Schizophrenia Bulletin
April 17, 2025
Nathan H. Heller, Frederick S. Barrett, Tobias Buchborn et al.
3 citations
Abstract Background and Hypothesis Visual hallucinations (VH) are a core symptom of both Lewy body diseases (LBDs; eg, Parkinson’s disease and dementia with Lewy bodies) and serotonergic psychedelics (SPs; eg, psilocybin and mescaline). While these conditions differ in etiology, overlapping phenomenology, and neural mechanisms suggest shared pathways. This review explores similarities and...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
March 11, 2025
Chenchen Song, Tinya Chang, Tobias Buchborn et al.
4 citations
preprint
Abstract The recent renaissance in research on psychedelics such as psilocybin has highlighted their therapeutic potential including their lasting influences on brain function. Here we report that a single systemic administration of the serotonergic psychedelic psilocybin can durably promote social behaviour in the Cntnap2-knockout mouse model of autism. This effect can be blocked by...
Frontiers in Neuroscience
October 6, 2023
Tobias Buchborn, Hannes Kettner, Laura Kärtner et al.
21 citations
The ego is one of the most central psychological constructs in psychedelic research and a key factor in psychotherapy, including psychedelic-assisted forms of psychotherapy. Despite its centrality, the ego-construct remains ambiguous in the psychedelic literature. Therefore, we here review the theoretical background of the ego-construct with focus on its psychodynamic conceptualization. We...
International Journal of Molecular Sciences
May 30, 2023
Tobias Buchborn, Taylor Lyons, Chenchen Song et al.
6 citations
(1) From mouse to man, shaking behavior (head twitches and/or wet dog shakes) is a reliable readout of psychedelic drug action. Shaking behavior like psychedelia is thought to be mediated by serotonin 2A receptors on cortical pyramidal cells. The involvement of pyramidal cells in psychedelic-induced shaking behavior remains hypothetical, though, as experimental in vivo evidence is limited. (2)...
Journal of Psychopharmacology
November 14, 2022
Meg J. Spriggs, Bruna Giribaldi, Taylor Lyons et al.
15 citations
Background: Psilocybin is a serotonin type 2A (5-HT 2A ) receptor agonist and naturally occurring psychedelic. 5-HT 2A receptor density is known to be associated with body mass index (BMI), however, the impact of this on psilocybin therapy has not been explored. While body weight-adjusted dosing is widely used, this imposes a practical and financial strain on the scalability of psychedelic...
Scientific Reports
January 21, 2021
Laura Kaertner, Michael B. Steinborn, Hannes Kettner et al.
152 citations
Abstract Psychedelic microdosing describes the ingestion of near-threshold perceptible doses of classic psychedelic substances. Anecdotal reports and observational studies suggest that microdosing may promote positive mood and well-being, but recent placebo-controlled studies failed to find compelling evidence for this. The present study collected web-based mental health and related data using...
Journal of Psychopharmacology
February 12, 2020
Tobias Buchborn, Taylor Lyons, Chenchen Song et al.
11 citations
BACKGROUND: Serotonin 2A receptors, the molecular target of psychedelics, are expressed by neuronal and vascular cells, both of which might contribute to brain haemodynamic characteristics for the psychedelic state. AIM: Aiming for a systemic understanding of psychedelic vasoactivity, here we investigated the effect of N-(2-hydroxybenzyl)-2,5-dimethoxy-4-cyanophenylethylamine - a new-generation...
Journal of Psychopharmacology
April 30, 2014
Tobias Buchborn, H. Schröder, V. Höllt et al.
71 citations
A re-balance of postsynaptic serotonin (5-HT) receptor signalling, with an increase in 5-HT1A and a decrease in 5-HT2A signalling, is a final common pathway multiple antidepressants share. Given that the 5-HT1A/2A agonist lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), when repeatedly applied, selectively downregulates 5-HT2A, but not 5-HT1A receptors, one might expect LSD to similarly re-balance the...