This review article argues that psychedelics may (re)mediate (dys)functional prediction coding that underlies many psychiatric disorders.
Abstract of Neuropharmacological modulation of the aberrant bodily self through psychedelics
“As a continual source of sensory input and fundamental component of self-referential processing, the body holds an integral modulatory role in cognition. In a healthy state, predictive coding of multisensory integration promotes the construction of a coherent self. However, several psychiatric disorders comprise aberrant perceptions of the bodily self that are purported to involve discrepancies in the integration and updating of multisensory systems. Changes in functional connectivity of somatomotor and high-level association networks in these disorders could be successfully remediated through 5-HT2A receptor agonism via psychedelics. Reported alterations of bodily self-awareness during psychedelic experiences allude to a potentially central role of the bodily self. In this article, we bridge the domains of (aberrant) bodily self-awareness and psychedelics by discussing the predictive coding mechanisms underlying the bodily self and psychedelics. Furthermore, we propose that psychedelically-induced desynchronization of predictive coding might involve modulation of somatomotor, sensorimotor, and high-level association networks that could remediate aberrant perceptions of the bodily self.”
Authors: Jasmine T. Ho, Katrin H. Preller & Bigna Lenggenhager
Summary of Neuropharmacological modulation of the aberrant bodily self through psychedelics
Embodied cognition highlights the intricate connection between bodily structures, dynamic interoceptive and sensorimotor states, and their neural and computational representations and awareness. Psychedelics have been shown to alter bodily self-awareness and to alter cognition, yet the description of this interrelationship in pathological conditions remains scarce.
Psychedelics exert their psychotropic effects via direct stimulation of specific receptors, including the 5-HT2A receptor (psilocybin), sigma-1 receptor (DMT), and sigma-2 receptor (LSD). Preliminary evidence supports significant symptom alleviation through psychedelic substances in various psychiatric disorders.
Research on the bodily self during psychedelic experiences and its relation to self-referential processing could uncover a potentially modulatory role in the alleviation of psychiatric disorders.
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Neuropharmacological modulation of the aberrant bodily self through psychedelics
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.12.006
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Cite this paper (APA)
Ho, J. T., Preller, K. H., & Lenggenhager, B. (2020). Neuropharmacological modulation of the aberrant bodily self through psychedelics. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 108, 526-541.