Cognitive and affective models of psychedelics in rodents.
International review of neurobiology 2025 DOI: 10.1016/bs.irn.2025.02.002 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Depression |
| Keywords | Behaviour Cognition Rodent Psychedelic treatment Therapeutic psychedelics Psychedelic potential Animal models Preclinical research Drug discovery models Translational validity Clinical translation Translational science Affective effects Behavioral effects Neurocognitive effects |
| Citations | 3 |
| Key findings | Adopting translational assays is critical for interpreting rodent studies of psychedelic effects on cognition and affect, and these studies can help unravel therapeutic mechanisms only if they use relevant doses. |
Abstract
In recent years, public and academic interest into psychedelics has increased, given the clinical evidence of their potential benefits for treating psychiatric conditions such as major depressive disorder (MDD). While this has been accompanied by several landmark human studies, mechanistic studies in rodents are still relatively few, but such studies are crucial for understanding the neurobiological underpinnings of the therapeutic effects of psychedelics. However, findings from rodent studies will only be of benefit to patients if they achieve translational validity. In this chapter, we will critically appraise rodent assays traditionally used to study cognition and affect, summarising existing findings with psychedelics. We will also highlight novel, translationally valid assays that have already been used or could be used in the future to study these drugs. We argue that the adoption of translational assays is critical for the interpretation of animal studies of psychedelic effects on cognition and affect. We also discuss how these studies have the potential to help unravel the mechanisms which contribute to their therapeutic effects but only if they involve relevant doses.
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on depression, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Synaptic Dysfunction in Depression: Potential Therapeutic Targets | 2012 | Review | |
| Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: A New Approach to Preventing Relapse | 2003 | Review | |
| Synthesizing the Evidence for Ketamine and Esketamine in Treatment-Resistant Depression: An International Expert Opinion on the Available Evidence and Implementation Adults with treatment-resistant depression | 2021 | Review | |
| Classic psychedelics: An integrative review of epidemiology, therapeutics, mystical experience, and brain network function. General population | 2019 | Integrative review | |
| Sudarshan Kriya Yogic Breathing in the Treatment of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression: Part II—Clinical Applications and Guidelines | 2005 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 4
- Psilocybin Decreases Preference for Large Rewards Accompanied by Increased Activity of Parvalbumin Neurons With Perineuronal Nets in the Medial Prefrontal Cortex. European Journal of Neuroscience June 1, 2026
- Psilocybin decreases reward-seeking behavior accompanied by increased activity of parvalbumin neurons with perineuronal nets in the medial prefrontal cortex bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) December 26, 2025
- Investigating the Effects of Psilocybin on Cognitive Flexibility in Touchscreen and Naturalistic Variations of the Probabilistic Reversal Learning Task bioRxiv August 12, 2026
- High hopes? Precision psychedelic addiction medicine. Frontiers in Psychiatry 2025
Cites 26
- Harnessing psilocybin: antidepressant-like behavioral and synaptic actions of psilocybin are independent of 5-HT2R activation in mice Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences April 13, 2021
- Emotions and brain function are altered up to one month after a single high dose of psilocybin. Scientific Reports February 10, 2020
- LSD Acutely Impairs Fear Recognition and Enhances Emotional Empathy and Sociality Neuropsychopharmacology June 1, 2016
- Animal Models of Serotonergic Psychedelics ACS Chemical Neuroscience September 24, 2012
- The serotonin 2C receptor potently modulates the head-twitch response in mice induced by a phenethylamine hallucinogen Psychopharmacology February 19, 2010
and 21 more in the library