Journal of Clinical and Translational Science
April 1, 2026
Emma R. Huels, S. Smith, Tiecheng Liu et al.
Objectives/Goals: We recently showed that a single dose of psilocybin, a serotonergic psychedelic, attenuated mechanical hypersensitivity for up to 28 days in a rat model of formalin-induced chronic centralized pain. The goal of this study is to determine whether psilocybin can alleviate chronic pain in a rat model of reserpine-induced chronic centralized pain. Methods/Study Population: Adult...
Journal of Neuroscience
December 19, 2025
Nicolas G. Glynos, Emma R. Huels, Trent Groenhout et al.
11 citations
N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) is a serotonergic psychedelic that is being investigated for the treatment of psychiatric disorders. Although the neurophysiological effects of DMT in humans are well characterized, similar studies in animal models and data on the neurochemical effects of DMT are generally lacking, which are critical for a mechanistic understanding. Here, we combined behavioral...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
October 14, 2025
Nicholas Kolbman, Amanda Nelson, Rachel Summerfield et al.
1 citation
preprint
Abstract Background and Purpose Given the increase in recreational psychedelic use and ongoing efforts to explore psychedelics as therapeutic agents for mental health disorders, there is an urgent need to understand the effect of psychedelics such as psilocybin and N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) on sleep-wake states, which share a bidirectional relationship with mental health. Here, we...
bioRxiv Preprint Server
January 22, 2025
Emma R. Huels, Nicholas Kolbman, Christopher W Fields et al.
4 citations
preprint
Serotonergic psychedelics enhance neurophysiological complexity and the repertoire of brain states, whereas general anesthetics produce opposite effects. Serotonergic psychedelics are also known to increase wakefulness and reduce sleep time in rodents. Therefore, we hypothesized that 2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodopamphetamine (DOI), a serotonergic psychedelic, will reverse general anesthesia and restore...
Frontiers in Psychology
2025
Emma R. Huels, Lily Carter, Gang Xu et al.
Previous studies have demonstrated acute changes in brain activity that occur during shamanic journeying-an ancient spiritual practice used for physical, psychological, and spiritual healing. However, the effect of shamanic journeying on other physiological measures, such as heart rate variability, remains unknown. We investigated changes in heart rate variability (HRV) during sessions of...
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
March 18, 2021
Emma R. Huels, Hyoungkyu Kim, UnCheol Lee et al.
51 citations
Psychedelics have been recognized as model interventions for studying altered states of consciousness. However, few empirical studies of the shamanic state of consciousness, which is anecdotally similar to the psychedelic state, exist. We investigated the neural correlates of shamanic trance using high-density electroencephalography (EEG) in 24 shamanic practitioners and 24 healthy controls...