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Calvin Ly

4 papers in the library · 1,492 citations · publishing 2018-2025

Papers

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The psychoplastogen tabernanthalog induces neuroplasticity without proximate immediate early gene activation.

Nature Neuroscience September 1, 2025 Isak K Aarrestad, Lindsay P. Cameron, Ethan M Fenton et al.

Nonhallucinogenic psychoplastogens, such as tabernanthalog (TBG), are being developed as potentially safer, more scalable alternatives to psychedelics for promoting neuronal growth and treating various brain conditions. Currently, it is unclear whether 5-hydroxytryptamine 2A (5-HT2A) receptors and immediate early gene (IEG) activation have a role in the neuroplasticity-promoting effects of...

Psychedelic-inspired drug discovery using an engineered biosensor.

Cell April 28, 2021 Chunyang Dong, Calvin Ly, Lee E. Dunlap et al. 207 citations

Ligands can induce G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) to adopt a myriad of conformations, many of which play critical roles in determining the activation of specific signaling cascades associated with distinct functional and behavioral consequences. For example, the 5-hydroxytryptamine 2A receptor (5-HT2AR) is the target of classic hallucinogens, atypical antipsychotics, and psychoplastogens....

Transient Stimulation with Psychoplastogens Is Sufficient to Initiate Neuronal Growth

ACS Pharmacology & Translational Science September 11, 2020 Calvin Ly, Alexandra C. Greb, Maxemiliano V. Vargas et al. 127 citations

Cortical neuron atrophy is a hallmark of depression and includes neurite retraction, dendritic spine loss, and decreased synaptic density. Psychoplastogens, small molecules capable of rapidly promoting cortical neuron growth, have been hypothesized to produce long-lasting positive effects on behavior by rectifying these deleterious structural and functional changes. Here we demonstrate that...

Psychedelics Promote Structural and Functional Neural Plasticity

Cell Reports June 1, 2018 Calvin Ly, Alexandra C. Greb, Lindsay P. Cameron et al. 1,158 citations

Atrophy of neurons in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) plays a key role in the pathophysiology of depression and related disorders. The ability to promote both structural and functional plasticity in the PFC has been hypothesized to underlie the fast-acting antidepressant properties of the dissociative anesthetic ketamine. Here, we report that, like ketamine, serotonergic psychedelics are capable of...