Frontiers in Pharmacology
November 28, 2019
Karolina E. Kolaczynska, Dino Luethi, Daniel Trachsel et al.
24 citations
Background: 2,4,5-Trimethoxyamphetamine (TMA-2) is a potent psychedelic compound. Structurally related 4-alkyloxy-substituted 2,5-dimethoxyamphetamines and phenethylamine congeners (2C-O derivatives) have been described but their pharmacology is mostly undefined. Therefore, we examined receptor binding and activation profiles of these derivatives at monoamine receptors and transporters....
Frontiers in Pharmacology
November 19, 2019
Richard J. Zeifman, Fernanda Palhano-Fontes, Jaime E. C. Hallak et al.
79 citations
Suicide is a major public health problem. Given increasing suicide rates and limitations surrounding current interventions, there is an urgent need for innovative interventions for suicidality. Although ayahuasca has been shown to target mental health concerns associated with suicidality (i.e., depression and hopelessness), research has not yet explored the impact of ayahuasca on suicidality....
Frontiers in Pharmacology
April 24, 2019
Dino Luethi, Melanie Walter, Xun Zhou et al.
33 citations
Halogenated derivatives of amphetamine-type stimulants are appearing on the drug market, often with altered pharmacological profile and sometimes different legal status compared to the non-halogenated substances. The aim of the present study was to investigate the pharmacological profile and hepatocellular toxicity of para-halogenated amphetamines and cathinones. The potential of amphetamine,...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
2019
Soledad Marton, Bruno González, Sebastián Rodríguez-bottero et al.
71 citations
Ibogaine is an atypical psychedelic alkaloid, which has been subject of research due to its reported ability to attenuate drug-seeking behavior. Recent work has suggested that ibogaine effects on alcohol self-administration in rats are related to the release of Glial cell Derived Neurotrophic Factor (GDNF) in the Ventral Tegmental Area (VTA), a mesencephalic region which hosts the soma of...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
2019
Cristina Miliano, Matteo Marti, Nicholas Pintori et al.
4-Iodo-2,5-dimethoxy-N-(2-methoxybenzyl)phenethylamine (25I-NBOMe), commonly called "N-Bomb," is a synthetic phenethylamine with psychedelic and entactogenic effects; it was available on the Internet both as a legal alternative to lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and as a surrogate of 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine (MDMA), but now it has been scheduled among controlled substances. 25I-NBOMe...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
November 2, 2018
Adam Hampshire, Christopher Timmermann, Christopher Timmermann et al.
422 citations
Responses to psychedelics are notoriously difficult to predict, yet significant work is currently underway to assess their therapeutic potential and the level of interest in psychedelics among the general public appears to be increasing. We aimed to collect prospective data in order to improve our ability to predict acute- and longer-term responses to psychedelics. Individuals who planned to...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
August 31, 2018
Kenneth Alper, Bin Dong, Relish Shah et al.
37 citations
There is a substantive clinical literature on classical hallucinogens, most commonly lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) for the treatment of alcohol use disorder. However, there has been no published research on the effect of LSD on alcohol consumption in animals. This study evaluated the effect of LSD in mice using a two-bottle choice alcohol drinking paradigm. Adult male C57BL/6J mice were...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
July 6, 2018
Elizabeth B. de Sousa Fernandes Perna, Eef L. Theunissen, Patrick C. Dolder et al.
18 citations
Availability of novel psychoactive substances (NPS) exponentially increased over the last years. Risk evaluations of NPS are hampered by the lack of pharmacological studies in humans on health parameters. The aim of the present study was Tto evaluate safety and neurocognitive function of healthy volunteers (N=12) who received single doses of 100 and 150 mg 4-fluoroamphetamine (4-FA), a...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
July 5, 2018
Eduardo Ekman Schenberg
242 citations
Mental disorders are rising while development of novel psychiatric medications is declining. This stall in innovation has also been linked with intense debates on the current diagnostics and explanations for mental disorders, together constituting a paradigmatic crisis. A radical innovation is psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAP): professionally supervised use of ketamine, MDMA, psilocybin,...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
May 29, 2018
Elisangela Gouveia Cata-Preta, Yasmim A. Serra, Eliseu Da Cruz Moreira-Junior et al.
50 citations
Ayahuasca is a hallucinogenic beverage produced from the decoction of Banisteriopsis caapi (Bc) and Psychotria viridis (Pv), β-carboline- and N,N-dimethyltryptamine(DMT)-containing plants, respectively. Accumulating evidence suggests that ayahuasca may have therapeutic effects on ethanol abuse. It is not known, however, whether its effects are dependent on the presence of DMT or if...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
April 5, 2018
Antonio Inserra
91 citations
Ayahuasca ingestion modulates brain activity, neurotransmission, gene expression and epigenetic regulation. N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT, one of the alkaloids in Ayahuasca) activates sigma 1 receptor (SIGMAR1) and others. SIGMAR1 is a multi-faceted stress-responsive receptor which promotes cell survival, neuroprotection, neuroplasticity, and neuroimmunomodulation. Simultaneously, monoamine...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
April 3, 2018
Tara C. Malone, Sarah E. Mennenga, Jeffrey Guss et al.
128 citations
A growing body of evidence shows that existential and spiritual well-being in cancer patients is associated with better medical outcomes, improved quality of life, and serves as a buffer against depression, hopelessness, and desire for hastened death. Historical and recent research suggests a role for psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy in treating cancer-related anxiety and depression. A...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
March 20, 2018
Joaquim Soler, Matilde Elices, Elisabet Domínguez‐clavé et al.
104 citations
Background: The therapeutic effects of the Amazonian plant tea ayahuasca may relate to its ability to enhance mindfulness capacities. Ayahuasca induces a modified state of awareness through the combined action of its active principles: the psychedelic N,N- dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and a series of centrally acting β-carbolines, mainly harmine and tetrahydroharmine. To better understand the...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
March 13, 2018
Esther Papaseit, Marta Torrens, Mireia Ventura et al.
61 citations
2,5-dimethoxy-4-bromophenethylamine (2C-B) is a psychedelic phenylethylamine derivative, structurally similar to mescaline. It is a serotonin 5-hydroxytryptamine-2A (5-HT2A), 5-hydroxytryptamine-2B (5-HT2B), and 5-hydroxytryptamine-2C (5-HT2C) receptor partial agonist used recreationally as a new psychoactive substance. It has been reported that 2C-B induces mild psychedelic effects, although...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
March 2, 2018
Link Swanson
185 citations
How do psychedelic drugs produce their characteristic range of acute effects in perception, emotion, cognition, and sense of self? How do these effects relate to the clinical efficacy of psychedelic-assisted therapies? Efforts to understand psychedelic phenomena date back more than a century in Western science. In this article I review theories of psychedelic drug effects and highlight key...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
February 21, 2018
Elizabeth M. Nielson, Darrick G. May, Alyssa A. Forcehimes et al.
111 citations
Research on the clinical applications of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy has demonstrated promising early results for treatment of alcohol dependence. Detailed description of the content and methods of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, as it is conducted in clinical settings, is scarce. Methods: An open-label pilot (proof-of-concept) study of psilocybin-assisted treatment of alcohol...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
February 20, 2018
Michael P. Bogenschutz, Samantha K. Podrebarac, Jessie H. Duane et al.
125 citations
After a hiatus of some 40 years, clinical research has resumed on the use of classic hallucinogens to treat addiction. Following completion of a small open-label feasibility study, we are currently conducting a double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial of psilocybin-assisted treatment of alcohol use disorder. Although treatment effects cannot be analyzed until the study is complete,...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
January 17, 2018
Leor Roseman, David Nutt, Robin Carhart-Harris
814 citations
Introduction: It is a basic principle of the "psychedelic" treatment model that the quality of the acute experience mediates long-term improvements in mental health. In the present paper we sought to test this using data from a clinical trial assessing psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression (TRD). In line with previous reports, we hypothesized that the occurrence and magnitude of Oceanic...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
January 17, 2018
S. Gruber, Kelly A. Sagar, M. Dahlgren et al.
The vast majority of states have enacted full or partial medical marijuana (MMJ) programs, causing the number of patients seeking certification for MMJ use to increase dramatically in recent years. Despite increased use of MMJ across the nation, no studies thus far have examined the specific impact of MMJ on cognitive function and related brain activation. In the present study, MMJ patients...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
January 15, 2018
K. D. Du Jardin, Nico Liebenberg, M. Cajina et al.
Rationale: The mechanisms responsible for the unique antidepressant properties of ketamine have only been partly resolved. Recent preclinical reports implicate the neurotransmitter serotonin [5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)] in the antidepressant-like response of ketamine, and modulation of 5-HT1B receptors has been hypothesized to attain an important role. Objectives: To evaluate the role of...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
2018
Deborah C. Mash, Linda Duque, Bryan Page et al.
109 citations
Ibogaine may be effective for transitioning opioid and cocaine dependent individuals to sobriety. American and European self-help groups provided public testimonials that ibogaine alleviated drug craving and opioid withdrawal symptoms after only a single dose administration. Preclinical studies in animal models of addiction have provided proof-of-concept evidence in support of these claims....
Frontiers in Pharmacology
2018
Joaquín González, José P Prieto, Paola Rodríguez et al.
31 citations
Ibogaine is a potent psychedelic alkaloid that has been the focus of intense research because of its intriguing anti-addictive properties. According to anecdotic reports, ibogaine has been originally classified as an oneirogenic psychedelic; i.e., induces a dream-like cognitive activity while awake. However, the effects of ibogaine administration on wakefulness (W) and sleep have not been...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
November 8, 2017
Rainer Kraehenmann, Dan Pokorný, Helena Aicher et al.
115 citations
Rationale: Stimulation of serotonin 2A (5-HT2A) receptors by lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and related compounds such as psilocybin has previously been shown to increase primary process thinking – an ontologically and evolutionary early, implicit, associative, and automatic mode of thinking which is typically occurring during altered states of consciousness such as dreaming. However, it is...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
July 11, 2017
Drew J. Puxty, Johannes G. Ramaekers, Rafael de la Torre et al.
33 citations
Previous research has shown that a single dose of MDMA induce a dissociative state, by elevating feelings of depersonalization and derealization. Typically, it is assumed that action on the 5-HT2A receptor is the mechanism underlying these psychedelic experiences. In addition, other studies have shown associations between dissociative states and biological parameters (heart rate, cortisol),...
Frontiers in Pharmacology
June 28, 2017
Patrick C. Dolder, Edna Grünblatt, Felix Müller et al.
12 citations
Rationale Renewed interest has been seen in the use of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) in psychiatric research and practice. The repeated use of LSD leads to tolerance that is believed to result from serotonin (5-HT) 5-HT2A receptor downregulation. In rats, daily LSD administration for 4 days decreased frontal cortex 5-HT2A receptor binding. Additionally, a single dose of LSD acutely increased...