Neuropsychopharmacology
July 10, 2026
Christopher W. Thomas, Kayleigh S. Lamalfa, Tobias P. Whelan et al.
Anhedonia, the blunted responsiveness to previously rewarding stimuli, is a core symptom of several psychiatric disorders. Ketamine and psilocybin have shown promising evidence in ameliorating anhedonic symptoms in clinical trials. The Probabilistic Reward Task (PRT) was developed to objectively quantify reward responsiveness in clinical populations and laboratory animals. Here, the PRT was...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
March 4, 2026
Matthew D. B. Claydon, Justyna K. Hinchcliffe, Julia M. Bartlett et al.
Abstract Psilocybin, a serotonergic psychedelic, can produce rapid and enduring antidepressant effects in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD)[1, 2], yet the neural mechanisms underlying these effects remain unclear. Negative affective biases are an important neuropsychological mechanism central to the development and perpetuation of MDD[3]. Using a translational rodent model, we...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
January 15, 2026
Justyna K. Hinchcliffe, Christopher W. Thomas, Gary Gilmour et al.
Abstract The serotonergic psychedelic, psilocybin, shows potential for rapid and sustained antidepressant effects but the underlying mechanisms remain unknown. Using a chronic interferon-alpha–induced rat model of depression, we show acute psilocybin (0.3 mg/kg) reverses impaired reward-induced biases within 24hrs, with effects enduring for at least 7 days. This suggests psilocybin can restore...
Mol Psychiatry
December 1, 2025
Ross J. Purple, Rahul Gupta, Christopher W. Thomas et al.
correction
In this article the author’s name Robin Carhart-Harris was incorrectly written as Robin Carhartt-Harris. The original article has been corrected.
Molecular Psychiatry
August 26, 2025
Ross J. Purple, Rahul Gupta, Christopher W. Thomas et al.
2 citations
Abstract We quantify cellular- and circuit-resolution neural network dynamics following therapeutically relevant doses of the psychedelic psilocybin. Using chronically implanted Neuropixels probes, we recorded local field potentials (LFP) alongside action potentials from hundreds of neurons spanning infralimbic, prelimbic and cingulate subregions of the medial prefrontal cortex of...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
December 13, 2024
Ross J. Purple, Rekha Gupta, Christopher W. Thomas et al.
1 citation
preprint
SUMMARY We quantify cellular- and circuit-resolution neural network dynamics following therapeutically relevant doses of the psychedelic psilocybin. Using chronically implanted Neuropixels probes, we recorded local field potentials (LFP) alongside action potentials from hundreds of neurons spanning infralimbic, prelimbic and cingulate subregions of the medial prefrontal cortex of...
Science Translational Medicine
January 10, 2024
Katie Kamenish, Roberto Arban, Aslihan Selimbeyoglu et al.
26 citations
How rapid-acting antidepressants (RAADs), such as ketamine, induce immediate and sustained improvements in mood in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) is poorly understood. A core feature of MDD is the prevalence of cognitive processing biases associated with negative affective states, and the alleviation of negative affective biases may be an index of response to drug treatment....
Translational Psychiatry
February 23, 2022
Trevor Sharp, Christopher W. Thomas, Cristina Blanco-Duque et al.
40 citations
Abstract Serotonergic psychedelic drugs, such as psilocin (4-hydroxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine), profoundly alter the quality of consciousness through mechanisms which are incompletely understood. Growing evidence suggests that a single psychedelic experience can positively impact long-term psychological well-being, with relevance for the treatment of psychiatric disorders, including depression. A...
bioRxiv Preprint Server
February 16, 2021
Christopher W. Thomas, Cristina Blanco-Duque, Benjamin J. B. Bréant et al.
4 citations
preprint
Serotonergic psychedelic drugs, such as psilocin (4-hydroxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine), profoundly alter the quality of consciousness through mechanisms which are incompletely understood. Growing evidence suggests that a single psychedelic experience can positively impact long-term psychological well-being, with relevance for the treatment of psychiatric disorders, including depression. A...