Effects of Hallucinogens and Other Drugs on Mood and Performance

This non-treatment study will investigate the effects on mood and performance caused by hallucinogens and other psychoactive compounds.

Topic Healthy Subjects
Compound Placebo Psilocybin LSD
Country United States of America
Visit trial
Status Completed
Results Published
Start date 01 April 2014
End date 01 February 2019
Phase Phase I
Design Blinded
Type Interventional
Generation First
Participants 20
Sex All
Age 21- 50
Therapy No

Trial Details

Twenty volunteers between 21-50 years old will each participate in 16 total sessions, including sessions for: screening, preparation, experiment/drug, immediate follow-ups, a 1-month follow-up and 1 post completion urine collection. On each of five experimental session participants will orally ingest capsules of either a placebo or varying doses of one of 18 different psychoactive compounds. Subjective drug effects will be examined with methods previously used by this laboratory for characterizing the effects of psychoactive substances from a variety different classes. Volunteers will swallow capsules containing various doses of drugs, complete tasks during the session, and rate effects of the drug and complete questionnaires at the end of each session as described below.

Trial Number NCT02033707

Sponsors & Collaborators

Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University (Medicine) is host to the Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research, which is one of the leading research institutes into psychedelics. The center is led by Roland Griffiths and Matthew Johnson.

Papers

Double-Blind Comparison of the Two Hallucinogens Dextromethorphan and Psilocybin: Experience-Dependent and Enduring Psychological Effects in Healthy Volunteers
This double-blind experimental study (n=20) compares the effects of high-dose dextromethorphan (DXM; 400mg/70kg) to psilocybin (10, 20, 30mg/70kg) under conditions typical of therapeutic psychedelic trials. DXM and psilocybin showed increases over placebo in ratings of experiences predictive of psychological benefit at 1 week. However, psilocybin's effects were dose-dependent and more favourable, while DXM had poorer physical tolerability.

Double-blind comparison of the two hallucinogens psilocybin and dextromethorphan: similarities and differences in subjective experiences
This double-blind, placebo-controlled study (n=20) with psilocybin (10, 20, 30mg/70kg) and DMX (400mg/70kg) finds very similar subjective effects between the two drugs. The visual, mystical, and insightful effects were more pronounced with psilocybin, disembodiment with DMX.

Double-blind comparison of the two hallucinogens psilocybin and dextromethorphan: effects on cognition
This double-blind, placebo-controlled study (n=20) with psilocybin (10, 20, 30mg/70kg) and DMX (400mg/70kg) finds no global cognitive impairment. The study does find (for both drugs) effects on psychomotor performance, working memory, episodic memory, associative learning, and visual perception.

Data attribution

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