Psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) frequently utilises a “cotherapy” model, in which two therapists jointly support participants or patients through preparation, dosing, and integration sessions. While common in clinical trials, the experience of cotherapy from the participant perspective remains underexplored. This qualitative study examined experiences of cotherapy within a trial of...
With a resurgence in interest in psychedelics as rapid-acting and durable neuroplastic therapies, there is a critical need to develop more selective 5-HT 2A agonists to investigate the basic neurobiological mechanisms of psychedelics. Here, we show that selectivity for 5-HT 2A over the closely related 5-HT 2C receptor can be leveraged using structure-based design to target residue L123 2.53 in...
BACKGROUND: Cocaine is the most frequently used stimulant worldwide, with increasing consumption rates in Europe. Cocaine use is associated with great harm to individuals and society. As of today, psychotherapeutic interventions for cocaine use disorder (CUD) demonstrate only modest effect sizes, and no pharmacotherapy has been approved due to gaps in understanding the disease. However, a novel...
Advanced ScienceSeptember 25, 2025Ye Wang, Lei Liu, Jinghao Wang et al.2 citations
Current pharmacotherapies for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are limited by delayed onset and side effects. Despite ketamine exhibiting rapid relief of the core symptoms of PTSD, its clinical efficacy varies considerably depending on the timing of drug delivery. However, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. In this study, the therapeutic effects of early (day 1) and late (day 7)...
Introduction: Treatment-Resistant Depression (TRD) affects approximately 30–50% of patients with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) who fail to respond to at least two adequate antidepressant trials. This condition presents substantial clinical and functional challenges, and no universally accepted treatment algorithm currently exists. Emerging therapeutic strategies, particularly glutamatergic...
Abstract Rationale: Individual variability in psilocybin response is a major challenge for psychedelic-assisted therapy, with structural brain features potentially serving as predictive biomarkers. Lewis et al. (2020) reported that rostral anterior cingulate cortex thickness predicted emotional experiences under psilocybin, suggesting cortical morphometry as a marker of psychedelic...
Brain DisordersSeptember 23, 2025Matthew Halma, R. Levy, Joseph Varón2 citations
Clinicians and researchers are showing increased interest in psychedelic-assisted therapy for patients who don't show improvement from using conventional antidepressants. This updated review integrates recent developments, including data on lesser-studied compounds like DMT and 5-MeO-DMT, findings from large clinical trials, and evolving regulatory landscapes. In treatment-resistant depression,...
In recent years, ketamine therapy has become increasingly entangled with psychedelic culture, leading to widespread misinterpretation of its therapeutic mechanism. This manuscript challenges the prevailing narrative that positions ketamine as a consciousness-expanding agent or psychotherapy enhancer, highlighting the discord between this view and ketamine's well-established neurobiological...
Background Depression and burnout, which are common among healthcare workers, were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and psilocybin have been reported to reduce depressive symptoms, but the efficacy of the combination requires comparison to an active treatment control. We sought to evaluate the safety and preliminary efficacy of psilocybin and MBSR...
Background Depression and burnout, which are common among healthcare workers, were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and psilocybin have been reported to reduce depressive symptoms, but the efficacy of the combination requires comparison to an active treatment control. We sought to evaluate the safety and preliminary efficacy of psilocybin and MBSR...