Drugs of abuse induce cell type-specific adaptations in D1- and D2-medium spiny neurons (MSNs) in the nucleus accumbens core (NAcore) that can bias signalling towards D1-MSNs and enhance relapse vulnerability. Whether Δ9 -tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) use initiates similar neuroadaptations is unknown. D1- and D2-Cre transgenic rats were transfected with Cre-dependent reporters and trained to...
Opioid use disorder (OUD) is widely prevalent in the United States and there are high levels of comorbidity between OUD and mental illnesses, such as depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder. Psychotherapy, in addition to medication-assisted therapy, are considered important components of long-term OUD treatment. Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) is a breathing-based mind-body...
Alcohol is regularly consumed throughout most of the world, including by nearly half the U.S. population age 12 or older. Heavy drinking, which is also common, contributes to multiple adverse medical, psychiatric, and social outcomes and more than 140,000 deaths annually in the United States. It is the major risk factor for alcohol use disorder (AUD), whose current U.S. prevalence is 11%....
The link between civilization and technology has long been a hotspot of research around the world. Mobile phone addiction has become a common social phenomenon with advances in society and technology, wreaking havoc on people's emotional health, physical fitness, and personal connections. Considering the positive effects of mindfulness, this study used the diary method to explore the...
The psychedelic brew ayahuasca is increasingly being investigated for its therapeutic potential. Animal models are essential to investigate the pharmacological effects of ayahuasca since they can control important factors influencing it, such as the set and setting. Review and summarise data available on ayahuasca research using animal models. We systematically searched five databases (PubMed,...
Background: Increased mindfulness is associated with reduced alcohol consumption in patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD) after residential treatment. However, the underlying neurobiological mechanism of mindfulness in AUD is unclear. Therefore, we investigate the structural and functional alterations of the thalamocortical system with a focus on the mediodorsal thalamic nucleus (MD-TN), the...
This work is a literature review on the use of psilocybin in psychotherapeutic treatment of mental illnesses. The review answers the question of what opportunities and risks are associated with the use of the psychoactive substance psilocybin. Peer-reviewed studies between 2017 and 2022 were included. Nine studies were found regarding the following indications: tobacco addiction, anxiety and...
Frequent cannabis use is associated with a higher risk of developing cannabis use disorder and other adverse consequences. However, rodent models studying the underlying mechanisms of the reinforcing and withdrawal effects of the primary constituent of cannabis, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), have been limited. This study investigated the effects of daily THC (1 mg/kg, intraperitoneal, 9 days)...
For most psychiatric conditions, including alcohol use disorder (AUD), FDA-approved pharmacological treatments are limited and their efficacy is restricted to only certain subgroups of patients. Scientific interest in the potential of psychedelic drugs has dramatically increased because of clinical preliminary evidence of efficacy in treating various psychiatric disorders. One of the most...
Kappa opioid receptor (KOR) agonists have preclinical antipsychostimulant effects; however, adverse side effects have limited their therapeutic development. In this preclinical study, conducted in Sprague Dawley rats, B6-SJL mice, and non-human primates (NHPs), we evaluated the G-protein-biased analogue of salvinorin A (SalA), 16-bromo salvinorin A (16-BrSalA), for its anticocaine effects, side...
Abstract Psychedelics are a broad class of drugs defined by their ability to induce an altered state of consciousness 1,2 . These drugs have been used for millennia in both spiritual and medicinal contexts, and a number of recent clinical successes have spurred a renewed interest in developing psychedelic therapies 3–9 . Nevertheless, a unifying mechanism that can account for these shared...
Psychedelic therapy has witnessed a resurgence in interest in the last decade from the scientific and medical communities with evidence now building for its safety and efficacy in treating a range of psychiatric disorders including addiction. In this review we will chart the research investigating the role of these interventions in individuals with addiction beginning with an overview of the...
Introduction: Not only can the experience of pain be a factor for drug use, but it can also be a motivation to use drugs again during and after treatment. Aim: The purpose of the present study was to compare the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment-based therapy and mindfulness-based therapy on chronic pain in People with drug addiction. Method: The research method was semi-experimental...
MindfulnessJune 7, 2023Charlayne A Scarlett, Courtney Strosnider, Hala Elahi et al.
Objectives: Research is needed to understand experiences with mindfulness-based treatments for addictions among diverse and underrepresented populations. This study examined qualitative data from a racially/ethnically and socioeconomically diverse group of participants who received Mindfulness-Based Addiction Treatment (MBAT) for smoking cessation. Methods: Participants were n = 28 adult...
Abstract: Background: Substance use disorders (SUDs) affect ~ 35 million people globally and are associated with strong cravings, stress, and brain alterations. Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) can mitigate the adverse psychosocial outcomes of SUDs, but the underlying neurobiology is unclear. Emerging findings were systematically synthesised from fMRI studies about MBI-associated changes...
OBJECTIVE: The primary aim of this qualitative study was to delineate psychological mechanisms of change in the first randomized controlled trial of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy to treat alcohol use disorder (AUD). Theories regarding psychological processes involved in psychedelic therapy remain underdeveloped. METHOD: Participants (N = 13) mostly identified as non-Hispanic and White, with...
Abstract Objective We examined the effects of mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) on depressive symptoms in patients with substance use disorders (SUDs) and explored the moderating effects of participant, method, and intervention characteristics. Methods We systematically searched 8 databases from their inception till November 2021. The inclusion criteria were primary studies evaluating MBIs...
Introduction A mindfulness intervention is a mind-body complementary health approach that focuses on the relationships between mind, body, brain, and behavior. Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and similar mindfulness programs have been shown to decrease drug craving and relapse and improve emotional regulation, stress, pain, and anxiety. To our knowledge, a very limited number of...
Initiation of non-medical dextromethorphan (DXM) use often occurs in adolescence, yet little is known about the consequences when use begins during this developmental period. The current experiments examined the acute response and the effects of repeated exposure to DXM in adolescence on behavior in adulthood. We examined locomotor activity, locomotor sensitization, and cognitive function, in...
Mindfulness‐based interventions have a positive impact on pain, craving, and well‐being in both patients with chronic pain and those with opioid use disorder (OUD). Although data are limited, mindfulness‐based cognitive therapy (MBCT) might be a promising treatment for patients with chronic noncancer pain combined with OUD. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore the feasibility and...