bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
March 23, 2026
Marco Taddei-Tardón, Lidia Medina-Rodríguez, Jessica L Maltman et al.
preprint
Abstract Serotonergic psychedelics have attracted considerable interest as promising therapeutic agents. However, the molecular mechanisms linking their acute hallucinogenic-like effects to longer-lasting neuroplastic responses remain incompletely understood, partly because of the scarcity of native neural models suitable for mechanistic studies. Here, we developed a neural stem cell-derived in...
Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism
March 21, 2026
Claudio Agnorelli, Joseph Peill, Gabriela Sawicka et al.
We investigated ketamine's neuroplastic effects in healthy human subjects using integrated Positron Emission Tomography (PET)/Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) measures before and 1-8 days after a single psychedelic dose of ketamine (1 mg/kg, intravenous). Eleven male participants underwent two PET/MRI scans with [11C]-UCBJ (synaptic density/plasticity), 1H-MRS (glutamate and GABA) and...
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
March 20, 2026
Marina A. M. Portes, Leandro J Bertoglio
Psilocybin, N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) are psychedelic compounds with therapeutic potential for depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress. However, their relevance to endurance athletes, who face particular psychological and physical stressors, remains underexplored. This study combines a conceptual overview...
Molecules and Cells
March 10, 2026
Victoria N. Chang, Roberto Ogelman, R. Vargas et al.
1 citation
Excitatory synapse plasticity at postsynaptic dendritic spines is directly modulated through neurotransmitter signaling. Serotonin (5-HT) is a primary neuromodulator in the brain that activates 14 subtypes of G-protein-coupled receptors, each with distinct expression patterns and downstream signaling mechanisms. Disruptions of serotonergic transmission during development and adulthood induce...
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
March 8, 2026
Nitzan Geva, Sarah J. Jefferson, Emi Krishnamurthy et al.
preprint
Abstract Fear extinction requires dynamic updating of cortical representations, yet the neural mechanisms underlying successful extinction remain poorly understood. Some psychoactive substances induce structural plasticity in medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), possibly underlying their therapeutic potential. Here we investigated whether MDMA, which enhances fear extinction, induces prefrontal...
Biomedicines
February 25, 2026
Alice Melani, Giorgia Papini, Marco Bonaso et al.
In recent years, psychopharmacology has experienced a significant challenge, highlighting a renewed and strong scientific interest in psychedelics as breakthrough therapies for mental disorders. Psychedelics can influence cognitive and emotional processes, showing solid therapeutic potential, particularly in treatment-resistant psychiatric disorders. Amongst the most promising compounds,...
Translational Psychiatry
February 19, 2026
Luís Carlos Pereira, Wigínio Gabriel Lira-Bandeira, Andréa Silva Medeiros-Bandeira et al.
Major depressive disorder remains a debilitating mental health disorder affecting millions worldwide, with growing prevalence among adolescents. Recent studies highlight the critical role of the somatosensory cortex in the neuropathology of depression, including structural alterations that impair cortical function. This study investigates the prophylactic effects of ayahuasca, a classic...
Neuropsychopharmacology
February 18, 2026
Itishree Sahoo, Sairam Masadi, Ashwath Maheswari et al.
3 citations
Psilocybin is a hallucinogen with complex neurobiological and behavioral effects. Underlying these effects are changes in brain neuroplasticity. We hypothesized psilocybin given during adolescence, a time of heightened neuroplasticity, particularly in the forebrain, would affect emotional behavior and the associated underlying neuroanatomy, neurocircuitry, and epigenetics. Female and male mice...
Translation The University of Toledo Journal of Medical Sciences
February 17, 2026
Amy Hooper, Evelyn K. Lambe
MDMA-assisted psychotherapy has emerged as a promising treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), particularly in individuals unresponsive to conventional interventions such as SSRIs and trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy. As recent clinical trials report durable symptom remission, ongoing debate surrounds the mechanisms underlying its therapeutic effects. This review...
Pharmaceuticals
February 14, 2026
Petra Dolenec, Goran Pelčić, Kristina Pilipović et al.
Glaucoma is increasingly recognized as an ischemic neurodegenerative disorder that extends beyond elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) to involve complex vascular, metabolic, and inflammatory mechanisms. Retinal ganglion cells are particularly vulnerable to ischemia-reperfusion injury, oxidative stress, and chronic neuroinflammation, leading to progressive disconnection from central visual...