15 papers in the library · 686 citations · publishing 2012-2026
Med (New York, N.Y.) August 14, 2026 Felix Müller, Anna M Becker, Christopher Böhlke et al.
In Basel, only a few hundred meters from where LSD was first synthesized, we tested LSD-assisted therapy for major depression in a randomized trial comparing two high doses with two low doses, each paired with supportive psychotherapy. This Backstory reflects on treating patients, long dosing days, and what remains uncertain.
Journal of Affective Disorders January 21, 2026 Jan Sarlon, Deanne Thomi, Annette B Brühl et al. 1 citation
Treatment-resistant depression (TRD) imposes major individual and societal burden, with few therapeutic options. Intranasal esketamine is approved but limited by cost and accessibility, prompting interest in alternatives. To assess non-inferiority of racemic ketamine versus esketamine in a real-world setting. We performed a single-centre, retrospective observational study emulating a randomized...
European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience June 1, 2025 Jan Sarlon, Else Schneider, Annette B Brühl et al. 2 citations
Mindfulness-based interventions (MBI) are effective in relapse prevention in Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Internet-based interventions have been demonstrated to be effective in the treatment of MDD. Consequently, the integration of MBI through mobile applications emerges as a promising supplementary intervention for MDD, contributing to the augmentation of mental health services,...
Psychiatry Research January 29, 2025 Felix Müller, Thomas Sauer, Corina Hänny et al. 11 citations
• A 60-year-old man with recurrent depression and history of delusions died after psilocybin-assisted therapy. • Psilocybin-triggered delusions and emotional dysregulation may have contributed. • Weak therapeutic alliance hindered assessment of patient's internal state. • Delusional symptoms may contraindicate psychedelic interventions. • This case emphasizes the need for thorough assessment...
Frontiers in Psychiatry January 23, 2024 Johannes Hauser, Jan Sarlon, Timur Liwinski et al. 10 citations
BackgroundAlthough the effectiveness of (es)ketamine for therapy-resistant depression (TRD) has been established, potential treatment-limiting factors include side effects like dissociation, anxiety, or elevated blood pressure. Music can reduce stress and negative emotions as anxiety. This study aimed to investigate the impact of listening to music during intranasal (es)ketamine administration...
Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment July 1, 2022 Patrick Köck, Katharina Froelich, Marc Walter et al. 68 citations
Iboga and its primary alkaloids, ibogaine and noribogaine, have been of interest to researchers and practitioners, mainly due to their putative efficacy in treating substance use disorders (SUDs). For many SUDs, still no effective pharmacotherapies exist. Distinct psychoactive and somatic effects of the iboga alkaloids set them apart from classic hallucinogens like LSD, mescaline, and...
Frontiers in Psychiatry October 22, 2020 Felix Müller, Markus Mühlhauser, Friederike Holze et al. 31 citations
A 39-year-old female patient suffering from severe, treatment-resistant depression and other symptoms associated with a complex personality disorder was admitted to our open psychiatric ward for an experimental treatment with lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). The substance was administered in repeated weekly and ascending doses. Curiously, there were no substantial acute subjective effects of...
Progress in Brain Research 2018 Felix Müller, Matthias E. Liechti, Undine E. Lang et al. 32 citations
The effects of hallucinogenic drugs on the human brain have been studied since the earliest days of neuroimaging in the 1990s. However, approaches are often hard to compare and results are heterogeneous. In this chapter, we summarize studies investigating the effects of hallucinogens on the resting brain, with a special emphasis on replicability and limitations. In previous studies,...
Psychological Medicine October 2, 2017 André Schmidt, Felix Müller, Claudia Lenz et al. 62 citations
Abstract Background Recent evidence shows that the serotonin 2A receptor (5-hydroxytryptamine2A receptor, 5-HT 2A R) is critically involved in the formation of visual hallucinations and cognitive impairments in lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)-induced states and neuropsychiatric diseases. However, the interaction between 5-HT 2A R activation, cognitive impairments and visual hallucinations is...
Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica September 21, 2017 Felix Müller, Claudia Lenz, Patrick C. Dolder et al. 149 citations
Objective It has been proposed that the thalamocortical system is an important site of action of hallucinogenic drugs and an essential component of the neural correlates of consciousness. Hallucinogenic drugs such as LSD can be used to induce profoundly altered states of consciousness, and it is thus of interest to test the effects of these drugs on this system. Method 100 μg LSD was...
Translational Psychiatry April 4, 2017 Felix Mueller, Claudia Lenz, Patrick C. Dolder et al. 124 citations
Abstract Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) induces profound changes in various mental domains, including perception, self-awareness and emotions. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the acute effects of LSD on the neural substrate of emotional processing in humans. Using a double-blind, randomised, cross-over study design, placebo or 100 μg LSD were orally...
Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews December 30, 2015 Felix Mueller, Claudia Lenz, Markus Steiner et al. 68 citations
MDMA ("ecstasy") is widely used as a recreational drug, although there has been some debate about its neurotoxic effects in humans. However, most studies have investigated subjects with heavy use patterns, and the effects of transient MDMA use are unclear. In this review, we therefore focus on subjects with moderate use patterns, in order to assess the evidence for harmful effects. We searched...
Current Pharmaceutical Design May 10, 2014 Johannes Wrege, André Schmidt, Anna Walter et al. 96 citations
We conducted a systematic review to assess the evidence for specific effects of cannabis on impulsivity, disinhibition and motor control. The review had a specific focus on neuroimaging findings associated with acute and chronic use of the drug and covers literature published up until May 2012. Seventeen studies were identified, of which 13 met the inclusion criteria; three studies investigated...
PLoS One September 10, 2013 Niklaus Denier, Hana Gerber, Marc Vogel et al. 32 citations
Heroin dependence is a chronic relapsing brain disorder, characterized by the compulsion to seek and use heroin. Heroin itself has a strong potential to produce subjective experiences characterized by intense euphoria, relaxation and release from craving. The neurofunctional foundations of these perceived effects are not well known. In this study, we have used pharmacological magnetic resonance...
Current Pharmaceutical Design 2012 Niklaus Denier, Marc Walter, Kerstin Bendfeldt et al.
We conducted a systematic review on resting state cerebral blood flow activities found in first-episode psychosis (FEP) and during acute effects of cannabinoids and opioids, mental states that can be profoundly different from normal functioning. The main goal was to identify connections of cerebral blood flow measure and regional brain activity patterns associated with subjective experiences...