The endogenous opioid system is thought to play a role in the placebo antidepressant response. A recent trial comparing the rapid antidepressant effects of ketamine versus placebo in surgical patients, some of whom were on chronic opioid therapy, revealed a substantial placebo effect. This finding provided an opportunity to test the hypothesis that opioid agonist exposure interacts with placebo...
Stress is a driver of depression, and people with depression often struggle to cope with stress and anxiety. This study directly compares the mental health effects of a Wim Hof Method intervention to an active control condition (slow breathing) in women with high stress and high depressive symptoms. We randomized 84 healthy midlife women with high stress and high depressive symptoms to either:...
Mindfulness-based interventions can improve psychological health; yet the mechanisms of change are underexplored. This pre-registered remote RCT evaluated a freely accessible digital mindfulness programme aiming to improve well-being, mental health and sleep quality. Health behaviour cognitions were explored as possible mediators. Participants from 91 countries (N = 1247, Mage = 27.03 [9.04])...
NeuropharmacologyNovember 1, 2024M C Acero-Castillo, M B M Correia, F V Caixeta et al.7 citations
Ketamine is an NMDA (N-methyl-d-aspartate) glutamate receptor antagonist, which has a myriad of dose-dependent pharmacological and behavioral effects, including anesthetic, sedative, amnestic, analgesic, and anti-inflammatory properties. Intriguingly, ketamine at subanesthetic doses displays a relevant profile both in mimicking symptoms of schizophrenia and also as the first fast-acting...
Antidepressant drugs promote neuronal plasticity, and activation of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) signaling through its receptor neuronal receptor tyrosine kinase 2 (NTRK2 or TRKB) is among the critical steps in this process. These mechanisms are shared by typical slow-acting antidepressants, fast-acting ketamine, and psychedelic compounds, although the cellular targets of each drug...
Abstract Purpose of the study Psilocybin is a rapidly-emerging treatment for depression, yet its impact on sleep is not well understood. We sought to explore the literature on sleep and psilocybin use, and explore the topic using our own primary data. Findings Whilst clinical trials demonstrate large depressive symptom improvements, the impact of psilocybin on sleep quality or insomnia...
This systematic review aims to elucidate the nexus between ketamine's psychoactive properties and its efficacy in treating a broad spectrum of psychiatric disorders. We searched three databases and used citation tracking to include 29 studies. Predominantly, mood disorders, including bipolar disorder (BD) and major depressive disorder (MDD) (MDD + BD: + n = 25 studies), a large part of them...
There is a large and rapidly growing body of literature investigating the therapeutic effects of classic psychedelics in affective and anxiety disorders, but very few studies have examined the inverse of this, that is, the potential for psychedelics to inflict anxiety and affective symptoms. A systematic literature search was performed and 39 papers were included in the final review to...
Ketamine and esketamine are increasingly prescribed in the treatment of resistant mood disorders and persons at risk of suicide. Ketamine is a drug of misuse with increasing non-therapeutic use in the general population. Herein, our aim was to determine whether ketamine and/or esketamine are disproportionately associated with reports of substance and/or alcohol misuse. Replicating a similar...
SleepOctober 11, 2024Jennifer M Mundt, Phyllis C Zee, Matthew D Schuiling et al.3 citations
Mindfulness-based interventions (MBI) have been shown to improve psychosocial functioning in medical populations but have not been studied in narcolepsy. This study examined the feasibility and acceptability of an MBI that was adapted for narcolepsy, including three variations in program length. Adults with narcolepsy (N = 60) were randomized to MBI groups of varying durations: brief (4 weeks),...