bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
February 6, 2023
G Pradeep Kumar, Kanishka Sharma, A Adarsh et al.
preprint
Abstract Meditation is a self-regulatory process practiced primarily to reduce stress, manage emotions and mental health. The objective was to study the information exchange between symmetric electrodes across the hemispheres during meditation using functional connectivity (FC) measures. We investigate the changes in the coherence between EEG electrode pairs during the meditation practiced by...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
January 3, 2023
Saampras Ganesan, Bradford A. Moffat, Nicholas T. van Dam et al.
1 citation
preprint
Abstract Objectives Mapping the neurobiology of meditation using 3 Tesla functional MRI (fMRI) has burgeoned recently. However, limitations in signal quality and neuroanatomical resolution have impacted reliability and precision of extant findings. Although ultra-high strength 7 Tesla MRI overcomes these limitations, investigation of meditation using 7 Tesla fMRI is still in its infancy....
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
December 11, 2022
Benjamin J. B. Bréant, José Prius-Mengual, David M. Bannerman et al.
5 citations
preprint
Abstract Psychedelics lead to profound changes in subjective experience and behaviour, which are typically conceptualised in psychological terms rather than corresponding to an altered brain state or a distinct state of arousal. Here, we performed chronic electrophysiological recordings from the cortex concomitant with pupillometry in freely moving adult male mice following an injection of a...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
November 15, 2022
Gavin P. Schmitz, Yi-Ting Chiu, Gabriele M. König et al.
15 citations
preprint
Summary Psilocin, the active compound in Psilocybe sp . mushrooms, is a serotonergic psychedelic that has recently gained renewed interest due to its potential as a therapeutic tool. Despite promising clinical findings, the underlying signaling mechanisms and brain region-specific effects of psilocin and other psychedelic drugs remain unclear. Psilocin, like other psychedelic compounds, is an...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
October 11, 2022
Pablo Mallaroni, Natasha L. Mason, Lilian Kloft et al.
4 citations
preprint
Abstract The knowledge that brain functional connectomes are both unique and reliable has enabled behaviourally relevant inferences at a subject level. However, it is unknown whether such “fingerprints” persist under altered states of consciousness. Ayahuasca is a potent serotonergic psychedelic which elicits a widespread dysregulation of functional connectivity. Used communally in religious...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
July 13, 2022
Andrea I. Luppi, Justine Y. Hansen, Ram Adapa et al.
5 citations
preprint
Abstract To understand how pharmacological interventions can exert their powerful effects on brain function, we need to understand how they engage the brain’s rich neurotransmitter landscape. Here, we bridge microscale molecular chemoarchitecture and pharmacologically-induced macroscale functional reorganisation, by relating the regional distribution of 19 neurotransmitter receptors and...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
May 22, 2022
Leonard Lerer, Eric Reynolds, Jeet Varia et al.
preprint
Abstract There is growing interest in the therapeutic potential of 5-MeO-DMT (5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine) for psychiatric disorders. While 5-MeO-DMT can be chemically synthesized, the parotoid gland secretions of Incilius alvarius (also known as the Colorado River or Sonoran Desert toad) contain 5-MeO-DMT and other molecules including bufotenine, bufagenins, bufotoxins, and indole...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
January 21, 2022
Konstantin A. Demin, Olga V. Kupriyanova, Вадим А. Шевырин et al.
preprint
Abstract Serotonergic hallucinogenic drugs potently affect human brain and behavior, and have recently emerged as potentially promising agents in psychopharmacotherapy. Complementing rodent studies, zebrafish ( Danio rerio ) is a powerful animal model for screening neuroactive drugs, including serotonergic agents. Here, we test ten different N-Benzyl-2-phenylethylamine (NBPEA) derivatives with...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
December 7, 2021
Federico Cavanna, Stephanie Müller, Laura Alethia de la Fuente et al.
8 citations
preprint
Abstract The use of low sub-hallucinogenic doses of psychedelics (“microdosing”) has gained popularity in recent years. Although anecdotal reports claim multiple benefits associated with this practice, the lack of placebo-controlled studies limits our knowledge of microdosing and its effects. Moreover, research conducted in laboratory settings might fail to capture the motivation of individuals...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
November 3, 2021
Brandon Gunasekera, Cathy Davies, Grace Blest‐hopley et al.
preprint
Abstract Background The neurobiological mechanisms underlying the effects of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) remain unclear. Here, we examined the spatial acute effect of THC on human on regional brain activation or blood flow (hereafter called ‘activation signal’) in a ‘core’ network of brain regions that subserve a multitude of processes. We also investigated whether the neuromodulatory...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
September 23, 2021
Pedro A. M. Mediano, Aleksi Ikkala, Rogier Kievit et al.
30 citations
preprint
ABSTRACT There has been considerable recent progress in measuring conscious level using neural complexity measures. For instance, such measures can reliably distinguish healthy awake from asleep subjects and vegetative state patients. However, this line of research has never explored the dynamics of conscious level during normal wakefulness. Being able to capture meaningful differences in...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
September 17, 2021
Tammi R. A. Kral, Regina C Lapate, Ted Imhoff‐Smith et al.
preprint
Abstract Mindfulness meditation has been shown to increase resting state functional connectivity (rsFC) between the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), which is thought to reflect improvements in attention to the present moment. However, prior research in long-term meditation practitioners lacked quantitative measures of attention that would provide a...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
July 23, 2021
Václav Havel, Andrew C Kruegel, Benjamin Bechand et al.
3 citations
preprint
Abstract Substance use and related mental health epidemics are causing increasing suffering and death in diverse communities. 1,2 Despite extensive efforts focused on developing pharmacotherapies for treating substance use disorders, there is an urgent need for radically different therapeutic approaches. 3,4 Ibogaine provides an important drug prototype in this direction, as a psychoactive...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
July 4, 2021
Gustavo Deco, Yonatan Sanz Perl, Jacobo Sitt et al.
16 citations
preprint
Abstract The complex intrinsic and extrinsic forces from the body and environment push the brain into non-equilibrium. The arrow of time, central to thermodynamics in physics, is a hallmark of non-equilibrium and serves to distinguish between reversible and non-reversible dynamics in any system. Here, we use a deep learning Temporal Evolution NETwork (TENET) framework to discover the asymmetry...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
June 23, 2021
Aurora Savino, Charles D. Nichols
2 citations
preprint
Abstract Psychedelic drugs are gaining attention from the scientific community as potential new compounds for the treatment of psychiatric diseases such as mood and substance use disorders. The 5-HT 2A receptor has been identified as the main molecular target, and early studies pointed to an effect on the expression of neuroplasticity genes. Analysing RNA-seq data from the prefrontal cortex of...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
June 17, 2021
Karina Karmirian, Livia Goto-Silva, Juliana Nascimento et al.
1 citation
preprint
Abstract Harmine is a β-carboline found in Banisteriopsis caapi , a constituent of ayahuasca brew. Ayahuasca is consumed as a beverage in native Americans’ sacred rituals and in religious ceremonies in Brazil. Throughout the years, the beneficial effects of ayahuasca to improve mental health and life quality have been reported, which propelled the investigation of its therapeutic potential to...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
February 25, 2021
Mario de la Fuente Revenga, Bohan Zhu, Christopher A. Guevara et al.
11 citations
preprint
Clinical evidence suggests a potential therapeutic effect of classic psychedelics for the treatment of depression. The most outstanding and distinct characteristic is the rapid and sustained antidepressant action with one single exposure to the drug. However, the biological substrates and key mediators of psychedelics’ enduring action remain unknown. Here, we show that a single administration...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
February 2, 2021
E. Amit Romach, M. Nachliely, Olivia Moran et al.
2 citations
preprint
Abstract The use of Psychedelics by patients with cancer to relieve anxiety and depression has increased in the past few years. Since Psychedelics have immunomodulatory effects, their consumption among cancer patients should be carefully considered due to their potential negative effects on the tumor immune stroma, especially in view of the increase in the utilization of therapeutic approaches...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
November 21, 2020
Matthew B. Wall, Tom P. Freeman, Chandni Hindocha et al.
4 citations
preprint
Abstract Cannabidiol (CBD) and Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) are two major constituents of cannabis with contrasting mechanisms of action. THC is the major psychoactive, addiction-promoting, and psychotomimetic compound, while CBD may have somewhat opposite effects. The brain effects of these drugs alone and in combination are poorly understood. In particular the striatum is implicated in the...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
September 10, 2020
Irene Mollinedo-Gajate, Chenchen Song, Marcos Sintes-Rodriguez et al.
6 citations
preprint
Abstract Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by core deficits in social interaction. The classic serotonergic psychedelic psilocybin has been suggested as a therapeutic agent that may ameliorate in the core symptomology of ASD. We found that the acute response to psilocybin was attenuated in the prenatal valproic acid exposure mouse model of ASD, and importantly, psilocybin rescued...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
August 20, 2020
Carla Pallavicini, Federico Cavanna, Federico Zamberlán et al.
17 citations
preprint
Abstract Background N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) is a short acting psychedelic tryptamine found naturally in many plants and animals. Few studies to date addressed the neural and psychological effects of DMT alone, either administered intravenously or inhaled in freebase form, and none conducted in natural settings. Aims Our primary aim was to study the acute effects of inhaled DMT in natural...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
August 14, 2020
N. Jones, Zarmeen Zahid, Sean M. Grady et al.
9 citations
preprint
Abstract Despite observed correlations between acute glucocorticoid release, self-reported anxiety, and long-term treatment outcomes for human studies using psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy approaches, the mechanistic relationship between psychedelic-dependent stress and subsequent behavioral responses remains unclear. Using rodents, direct manipulation of stress-associated hormone responses...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
July 30, 2020
Sergio Hernández, Roberto Dorta‐Guerra, José Suero et al.
2 citations
preprint
Abstract Objectives Our previous study showed that long-term practitioners of Sahaja Yoga Meditation (SYM) had around 7% larger grey matter volume (GMV) in the whole brain compared with healthy controls; however, when testing individual regions, only 5 small brain areas were statistically different between groups. Under the hypothesis that those results were statistically conservative, with the...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
July 24, 2020
Timo Torsten Schmidt, Simon Reiche, Caroline L. C. Hage et al.
preprint
ABSTRACT Kambô is the name for the secretion of the Giant Leaf Frog (Phyllomedusa bicolor) containing a plethora of bioactive peptides. Originally, it is ritually used by different ethnicities from the Amazon basin as a remedy against bad luck in hunting. In the last twenty years, Kambô has spread to Western urban centers, often associated with the use of ayahuasca. Anecdotal reports claim...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
July 14, 2020
Shreyas Bhat, Daryl A. Guthrie, Ameya Kasture et al.
3 citations
preprint
Abstract Missense mutations that give rise to protein misfolding are rare, but collectively, defective protein folding diseases are consequential. Folding deficiencies are amenable to pharmacological correction (pharmacochaperoning), but the underlying mechanisms remain enigmatic. Ibogaine and its active metabolite noribogaine correct folding defects in the dopamine transporter (DAT), but they...