F1000Research
May 24, 2018
Ronald S. Duman
203 citations
A single subanesthetic dose of ketamine, a glutamate NMDA receptor channel blocker, produces a rapid antidepressant response within hours that lasts about a week, even in treatment-resistant patients, and also treats suicidal ideation. Efforts are developing ketamine-like drugs with fewer side effects, including ketamine metabolites, stereoisomers, NMDA allosteric modulators, and mGluR2/3 autoreceptor blockers. Other targets enhancing glutamate neurotransmission or synaptic function, such as scopolamine and mTORC1 signaling activators, are being investigated. This discovery heralds a new era for developing rapid and efficacious antidepressant medications.
F1000Research
March 28, 2013
Teri Suzanne Krebs, Pål-ørjan Johansen
125 citations
In 2010, about 32 million people in the United States had used psychedelics such as LSD, psilocybin, mescaline, or peyote at least once in their lives. Among those aged 21 to 64, 17% reported lifetime use, with 22% of males and 12% of females. The highest rate of use occurred in people aged 30 to 34, where 20% had used psychedelics, including 26% of men and 15% of women. These estimates come from a national survey of 57,873 individuals aged 12 and older.
F1000Research
January 29, 2016
Daryl Bem, Patrizio Tressoldi, Thomas Rabeyron et al.
78 citations
A meta-analysis of 90 experiments from 33 laboratories in 14 countries found evidence for a small but statistically significant precognition effect—the ability to be influenced by a randomly selected stimulus before it occurs. The overall effect size (Hedges' g) was 0.09, with a combined z-score of 6.40 and a Bayes Factor of 5.1 × 10⁹, exceeding the threshold for decisive evidence. When the original author's experiments were excluded, the effect size for independent replications was 0.06, with z = 4.16. Additional analyses indicated the database was not significantly compromised by selection bias or p-hacking. The authors discuss the controversial status of precognition and related psi phenomena.
F1000Research
January 1, 2019
Helané Wahbeh, Cedric Cannard, Jennifer Okonsky et al.
21 citations
In a controlled experiment with 13 healthy adult trance channels, voice recordings showed increased arousal and power differences in specific frequency bins when participants read a story in a channeling state compared to a no-channeling state. However, electroencephalography, electrocardiography, galvanic skin response, and respiration measures did not differ significantly between the two states, despite participants reporting distinct subjective experiences. The findings suggest that while voice parameters may reflect the channeling experience, other physiological measures do not capture it. Future research should explore alternative measures such as EEG connectivity, fMRI, and biomarkers.
F1000Research
September 23, 2021
Kevin Mckernan, Liam T. Kane, Yvonne Helbert et al.
10 citations
The Psilocybe genus produces psychoactive compounds like psilocybin, psilocin, baeocystin, and aeruginascin. The widespread ability to synthesize psilocybin is thought to come from a horizontal gene transfer of a ~20Kb gene cassette. A new high-quality reference genome from long-read sequencing revealed variation in this cassette and enabled shotgun sequencing of spores from many strains. Here, 81 new Psilocybe genomes were assembled and compared to the P. envy reference. Surprisingly, Psilocybe galindoi, Psilocybe tampanensis, and Psilocybe azurescens lack sequence coverage for the known synthesis pathway but show amino acid homology to an alternative pathway, suggesting convergent evolution of psilocybin synthesis.
F1000Research
June 15, 2021
Kevin Mckernan, Liam T. Kane, Seth Crawford et al.
10 citations
The genome of the psychoactive Psilocybe cubensis mushroom was assembled using high-fidelity single molecule sequencing. The genome is 46.6 megabases in size, has a guanine-cytosine content of 46%, and is arranged in 32 contigs with an N50 of 3.3 megabases. Completeness assessment shows 97.6% of conserved genes are present, with 1.2% duplicated. The psilocybin synthesis cluster is contained within a single 3.2 megabase contig. The genome data are publicly available through NCBI BioProject under accessions PRJNA687911 and PRJNA700437.
F1000Research
March 15, 2021
Prinya Musikaphongsakul, Kimheang Ya, Pakpoom Subsoontorn et al.
6 citations
A physiologically based pharmacokinetic model predicts concentrations of psilocin, the active metabolite of psilocybin, in plasma and brain after intravenous and oral administration in rats and humans. The model, built from three published studies, uses seven organ compartments and shows good overall agreement with observed data, though oral doses are under-predicted and intravenous doses over-predicted. This tool may help design safer dosing regimens for therapeutic use.
F1000Research
July 22, 2021
Vivian Siegel, Benjamin Emmert-Aronson
5 citations
A structured, partnered meditative practice involving manual clitoral stimulation can trigger mystical-type experiences in both participants. In a survey of 780 practitioners recalling a single powerful session, 62% reported a complete mystical experience as measured by the Mystical Experience Questionnaire (MEQ30), with an average total score of 3.35. A separate study of 56 partnered pairs found 23% reported a complete mystical experience, with an average score of 3.21. The experience was strongly correlated between partners, and the role of stroker or strokee also influenced the reported intensity. Whether the brain activity during this practice resembles that of other mystical experiences remains unknown.
F1000Research
January 10, 2025
Brandon M. Brooks, Francisco J. Cordero, Stephen L. Alchermes et al.
3 citations
Social pain—emotional distress from harm to social connections, such as exclusion or rejection—can intensify physical pain. This systematic review of 14 randomized controlled trials found that acetaminophen, deceptive and open-label placebos, mindfulness training, and psilocybin reduce social pain. Combining acetaminophen with forgiveness was more effective than either alone. Pharmacological interventions target neural pathways shared by physical and social pain. Both pharmacological and non-pharmacological options are available for reducing social pain.
F1000Research
April 9, 2021
Kevin Mckernan, Liam T. Kane, Seth Crawford et al.
3 citations
Using high-fidelity single molecule sequencing, the genome of the psychoactive Psilocybe cubensis mushroom was assembled. The genome is 46.6 megabases in size, has a guanine-cytosine content of 46%, and is organized into 32 contigs with an N50 of 3.3 megabases. Completeness assessment shows 97.6% of conserved orthologs are present, with 1.2% duplicated. The psilocybin synthesis cluster is located on a single 3.2 megabase contig. The assembled genome sequence is publicly available through NCBI BioProject under accessions PRJNA687911 and PRJNA700437.
F1000Research
January 1, 2024
Nigel A Shaw
2 citations
Near-death experiences (NDEs) are profound mental events occurring near biological death, often explained materialistically as hallucinations. Recent animal and clinical studies report a surge of high-frequency electroencephalogram (EEG) activity, specifically gamma-band activity (GBA), around the time of death, when cortical activity is otherwise low. This perimortem GBA burst has been proposed as the neural basis of NDE. This study examines three questions: whether standard GBA is contaminated by muscle artifacts, whether NDE-mimicking agents also involve GBA, and whether the surge originates subcortically (in the amygdala) and is recorded at the cortex via volume conduction. The authors conclude that while the GBA surge is genuine and intriguing, evidence does not support it as the neurobiological foundation for NDE.
F1000Research
June 25, 2021
Helané Wahbeh, Nina Fry, Paolo Speirn et al.
2 citations
Noetic experiences—inner wisdom, direct knowing, or intuition—are often kept private due to cultural taboos, despite growing evidence they may be real. An online survey of 521 English-speaking adults worldwide collected demographic data and four open-ended questions about such experiences. Thematic analysis identified five main themes: Ways of Engagement, Ways of Knowing, Types of Information, Ways of Affecting, and Ways of Expressing. Common codes included sharing with others, impacting decision-making, intuition or just knowing, meditation or hypnosis, inner visions, setting intentions, healing others, writing for self, and inner voice. Future research aims to explore these themes and develop standardized evaluation methods to inform curricula and therapies.
F1000Research
September 7, 2022
Andrew B. Newberg, Nancy Wintering, Chloe Hriso et al.
1 citation
During Orgasmic Meditation, a partnered practice combining clitoral stimulation with meditation, brain activity in both men and women showed a hybrid pattern between typical meditation and sexual stimulation. In women, significant decreases in glucose metabolism occurred in the left inferior frontal, inferior parietal, insula, middle temporal, and orbitofrontal regions, as well as the right angular gyrus, anterior cingulate, and parahippocampus. Men showed decreased metabolism in the left middle frontal, paracentral, precentral, and postcentral regions and the right middle frontal and paracentral regions, alongside increased metabolism in the cerebellum and right postcentral and superior temporal regions. These distinct patterns may inform understanding of the link between spiritual and sexual experience.
F1000Research
June 25, 2026
Kyoko Kusano, Hayato Saigo, Naotsugu Tsuchiya
Measuring the diversity of subjective experiences (qualia) is difficult. A new mathematical approach, derived from category theory, offers two indices—'generalized magnitude' and 'spread'—to quantify how varied a person's internal structure of sensations is. In an experiment with 120 participants who rated similarities among color and emotion words, both indices captured differences in qualia structures at the group and individual levels. The indices also reveal complex graphical features of these structures, providing a principled way to compare how diverse people's inner experiences are.
F1000Research
June 25, 2026
Tomoyuki Nagayama, Kazuo Koyama, Tsuyoshi Takada
A quantum-mechanical mathematical model using a two-state system is applied to conceptualize life and death drives as dynamical variables, akin to spin components, with the mental state represented as a state vector. The indeterminacy of consciousness is hypothesized to arise from the indeterminacy of drives. Either–or questions are proposed as interventions to foster emotional awareness by fixing position through resonance, enabling the probing of 50% probability states. The model allows quantitative discussion of transition probabilities and uncertainty relations in psychology, offering a starting point for differentiating and integrating drives in psychodynamic intervention from an economic theory perspective.
F1000Research
September 5, 2024
Nigel A Shaw
Near-death experiences (NDEs) are profound mental events occurring near biological death, often interpreted as hallucinations by materialist theories. Recent animal and clinical studies report a paradoxical surge of high-frequency gamma-band activity (GBA) in the electroencephalogram around the time of death, when cortical activity is otherwise low. This perimortem GBA burst has been proposed as the neural basis of NDE. The study examines three issues: whether standard GBA is contaminated by muscle artifacts; whether NDE-mimicking agents also involve GBA; and the origin of the perimortem GBA surge, which may arise subcortically in the amygdala and be recorded at the cortex via volume conduction. Although intriguing, there is little evidence this GBA surge could serve as a neurobiological foundation for NDE.
F1000Research
November 25, 2022
T. Honda
A 45-year-old man with chronic low back pain after a vehicular accident, who had insufficient improvement from drug treatment, underwent a 3-month outpatient program combining mindfulness meditation (Zen breath counting and mantra), cognitive behavioral therapy, and multidisciplinary interventions. After treatment, the patient reported a decrease in subjective pain. Brain SPECT imaging showed improved excess blood flow from the right temporoparietal junction to the inferior parietal lobe. The authors suggest that Zen meditation is an effective intervention for chronic pain and that SPECT can measure its effectiveness.
F1000Research
January 1, 2017
Patrizio Tressoldi, Enrico Facco, Daniela Lucangeli
This essay argues that, given current science, some first-person descriptions of experience cannot be reduced to third-person neural or psychophysiological measurements. When analyzing the contents of qualia—the subjective qualities of experience—these first-person accounts are the only relevant information. For many phenomena, such reports are the sole reliable source, and knowing their neural or psychophysical correlates adds no further insight into the experiences themselves.