Despite increased naturalistic psychedelic use in the United States, limited studies explore factors currently contributing to use among ethnically and racially diverse psychedelic and cannabis-using adults. This study employs thematic analysis using qualitative data to explore the factors contributing to contemporary psychedelic use. Qualitative interviews (conducted in 2022-2023) from a...
Psychedelic-assisted therapy has shown rapid and durable benefits across multiple psychiatric conditions, yet the mechanisms underlying these effects remain incompletely understood. Full-dose psychedelic sessions simultaneously engage serotonergic neurochemistry, high-intensity subjective experience, and autonomic-interoceptive physiology, making it difficult to determine which components are...
Depression remains a significant public health concern worldwide and many individuals do not achieve adequate symptom relief from conventional treatments such as antidepressants and psychological therapies. Interest has therefore increased in alternative interventions, including psilocybin microdosing. This article aimed to critically review the current evidence regarding the use of psilocybin...
Nutt et al. recently proposed a common lexicon for psychedelic science including dosing categories for different forms of psychedelic use across multiple substances. Although common dosing terminology is an important advance, this paper identifies four challenges with Nutt et al.'s proposed categories. First, microdosing was defined as subperceptual; however, in both scientific and naturalistic...
RATIONALE: Psilocybin (PSI) microdosing, defined as a repeated administration of sub-perceptual doses, has gained increasing attention as a potential therapeutic strategy for affective and anxiety disorders. However, some molecular mechanisms, particularly regarding epigenetic regulation in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), remain poorly understood. OBJECTIVES: Therefore, the present study...
Repeated low-dose psilocybin is being developed as a scalable outpatient treatment for mood and anxiety disorders, but chronic exposure raises concern because psilocin binds the cardiac serotonin 5-HT2B receptor, whose sustained agonism causes drug-induced valvular heart disease (VHD). We evaluated this risk using an exposure–response model that incorporates functional efficacy and exposure...
Classic psychedelics, including psilocybin, LSD, DMT, 5-MeO-DMT, mescaline, and phenethylamines such as DOI, exert their core effects through 5-HT2A receptor agonism, inducing widespread neurobiological and behavioral changes relevant to psychiatric research. Emerging evidence suggests that these effects are modulated by sex, yet this dimension remains underrepresented in studies. This review...
Abstract: This chapter explores two distinct domains within psychopharmacology: alternative psychoactive substances and therapeutic medications. Alternative psychoactive substances, including synthetic cannabinoids, cathinones, hallucinogens, and opioids; herbal supplements; and inhalants, often fall outside traditional drug classifications. In contrast, therapeutic medications play a vital...
In the past decade, interest in studying psychedelic compounds as potential therapeutic agents has resurged. These studies carefully exclude individuals at risk for developing psychotic symptoms in response to psychedelic use. Given the potential for psychedelics to be established as treatments in psychiatry, it is important to more robustly understand their link with psychosis and...
RATIONALE: Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) shows substantial heterogeneity in symptoms and cognitive deficits. According to the Triple Pathway Model, this variability may stem from impairments in three neuropsychological domains: inhibition, motivation, and temporal processing. Repeated low-dose administration of psychedelics is being explored as a treatment for ADHD, but...