Medical research in psychedelics in the West has re-emerged in the 21st century after the research in the 1950s and early 1960s had collapsed by 1966 (Pollan 2018, 220). The results of recent research have been promising in the treatment of anxiety in terminal cancer patients and in the treatment of addiction and depression. Even at this early stage, the beneficial effects of psychedelics in...
Australia has become the first country to approve the use of psychedelics, namely MDMA and psilocybin, for clinical treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder and treatment-resistant depression. Here, we briefly explore the history of its use, how it works, and the hope it may provide people receiving end-of-life care.
Background: Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a debilitating health condition that is associated with significant morbidity and mortality in the U.S. While preliminary studies have demonstrated that psilocybin is associated with lowered odds of OUD, current research in this domain suffers from a lack of investigation into the impact of race/ethnicity on this association. Objective: To assess the...
Background: Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a debilitating health condition that is associated with significant morbidity and mortality in the U.S. While preliminary studies have demonstrated that psilocybin is associated with lowered odds of OUD, current research in this domain suffers from a lack of investigation into the impact of race/ethnicity on this association. Objective: To assess the...
NeuroscienceMay 7, 2025Murilo Barboza Fontoura, Jessica Leandra Oliveira da Rosa, Domenika Rubert Rossato et al.3 citations
Addiction is a chronic condition that poses a serious public health challenge, particularly highlighted by the global opioid crisis involving drugs such as morphine (MORPH). One of the major obstacles in effective detoxification is the high relapse rate, with many individuals resuming drug use after withdrawal. Pharmacological treatments developed so far have generally shown limited efficacy in...
This viewpoint explores the therapeutic potential of psychedelics in treating neuropsychiatric disorders, particularly through the modulation of brain entropy and the experience of ego dissolution. Psychedelics disrupt rigid neural patterns, facilitating enhanced connectivity and fostering profound emotional breakthroughs that may alleviate symptoms of disorders like depression, anxiety, PTSD,...
In a thought-provoking Genomic Press interview, Dr. Michael Wheeler emerges as a brilliant scientific innovator at the intersection of neuroscience and immunology. As an Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School and an investigator at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Wheeler's groundbreaking research explores how brain-immune communication shapes our behaviors and emotions. His innovative...
Long-term opioid use is associated with pharmacological tolerance, a risk of misuse and hyperalgesia in patients with chronic pain (CP). Tapering is challenging in this context, particularly with comorbid opioid-use disorder (OUD). The antihyperalgesic effect of ketamine, through N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) antagonism, could be useful. We aimed to describe the changes in the dose of opioids...
Intensive care medicineMay 5, 2025Ary Serpa Neto, Marcus Young, Jian Wen Chan et al.9 citations
Ketamine use is a potentially modifiable risk factor for hallucinations. We aimed to use target trial emulation to investigate the association between low-dose ketamine and development of hallucinations in critically ill patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). Retrospective study using data from a university affiliated ICU in Melbourne, Australia. Application of marginal structural models...
Ketamine has anesthetic, analgesic, and antidepressant properties which may involve multiple neuromodulatory systems. In humans, the opioid receptor (OR) antagonist naltrexone blocks the antidepressant effect of ketamine. This mechanism may differentiate ketamine from other NMDA receptor antagonists. Animal models that reflect OR-dependent behavioral effects of ketamine may shed light on the...