Psychedelic Research Links 2025

This link page is a centralised overview of psychedelic research studies published in 2025. It includes all research published (that came across our desk) on psychedelics, with those studies that are added to the database with links to their respective pages.

The research is sorted per month. We also include categorisation and a mini summary or excerpt for each study so you can review the information at a glance.

Psychedelic Research in January 2025

The first month of 2025 saw significant developments in psychedelic research, with a strong emphasis on psilocybin and ketamine studies. Several trials showed that psilocybin-assisted therapy can reduce symptoms of depression, anxiety, and PTSD, while also causing beneficial personality changes like decreased neuroticism and increased openness. However, researchers noted that the effects were less pronounced in patients who had both depression and PTSD.

Ketamine research continued to expand, with multiple studies examining its use for treatment-resistant depression. A notable finding was that higher doses (35-63mg/70kg) were more effective for anxiety than lower doses. Several studies also investigated ketamine’s mechanisms of action, suggesting it works through multiple pathways including inflammation reduction and myelin repair in the brain.

The field showed increased attention to safety and ethics, with multiple studies examining potential risks and side effects. Researchers emphasised the importance of proper medical oversight, particularly given concerns about sexual misconduct in therapeutic settings. There was also a growing focus on making psychedelic therapy more accessible, with studies examining cost-effectiveness and healthcare resource utilisation.

• Multidimensional Personality Changes Following Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy in Patients With Alcohol Use Disorder: Results From a Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | Analysis of an RCT of Psi-AT for AUD (n=84) that finds that “[r]elative to the placebo group, the psilocybin group showed significant reductions in neuroticism and increases in extraversion and openness.”
• Moderating factors in psilocybin-assisted treatment affecting mood and personality: A naturalistic, open-label investigation | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | This open-label trial of Psi-AT (using psilocybin-containing truffles) find that a “single high dose of psilocybin in combination with therapy was found to lower symptoms of anxiety, depression, PTSD and neuroticism over a period of 3-months. Scores on openness and conscientiousness increased after the treatment only.“
• Single-Dose Psilocybin for Depression With Severe Treatment Resistance: An Open-Label Trial | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | A relatively small trial (n=12) finds efficacy and safety of psilocybin therapy for depression, however, with the note that for patients who also experienced PTSD, the effects were muted.
• Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of an Innovative Psychedelic N,N-Dimethyltryptamine/Harmine Formulation in Healthy Participants: A Randomized Controlled Trial | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | This is the second paper that is published on the Reconnect-sponsored research into ‘pharmahuasca’ (DMT + harmine). The study tested DMT and harmine administered in the mouth (buccal delivery). DMT reached peak blood levels of 22.1 ng/ml and produced psychedelic effects similar to ayahuasca, lasting 2-3 hours. Harmine reached higher peak levels (32.5 ng/ml) but didn’t cause noticeable subjective effects compared to placebo.
• Effect of ketamine on anxiety: findings from the Ketamine for Adult Depression Study | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | RCT on the effect of ketamine (35mg/70kg in cohort 1, 35-63mg/70kg in cohort 2) on anxiety. A null effect was found in the first cohort. A statistically significant effect was found in the second cohort, but the effects waned after treatment stopped.
• Effects of repeated intravenous esketamine administration on affective biases
  • Trial | Open-label study of patients with TRD who received repeated ketamine infusions (n=18, n=12 had 5+ infusions). Researchers find that “improvement of TRD by esketamine may involve shifts in emotion processing and cognition, with the acute mood-lifting effects of esketamine being discernible from longer-lasting antidepressant response, which consolidates after repeated administration.“
• Effects of Ketamine vs. Midazolam in Adolescent Treatment Resistant Depression
  • Trial | A head-to-head comparison against midazolam (another anesthetic, benzo) in 55 adolescents with TRD. The study finds that “[k]etamine showed a reduction in depressive and anxiety symptoms during a short-term period with particular efficacy in alleviating inner tension over midazolam, suggesting its potential advantages in specific symptom relief in rarely studied adolescent TRD.“
• Intranasal racemic ketamine maintenance therapy for patients with treatment-resistant depression: a naturalistic feasibility study
  • Trial | This observational study reported on patients (n=5) who had success with ketamine treatment for TRD and were on a ‘maintenance’ dose (up to 14x over ~6 months).
• Proteomic patterns associated with ketamine response in major depressive disorders
  • Trial | Analysis of proteomic patterns (large-scale experimental analysis of proteins and proteomes) in 30 patients with depression finds six proteins pivotal to the antidepressant effects of ketamine.
• Neurophysiological correlates of ketamine-induced dissociative state in bipolar disorder: insights from real-world clinical settings
  • Trial | This open-label study of 30 bipolar depression patients found that ketamine infusions caused specific brain activity changes measured by EEG, including reduced low-frequency activity and increased gamma waves. Late responders showed more pronounced EEG changes than early responders, suggesting potential differences in treatment sensitivity.
• Esketamine Treatment Trajectory of Patients with Treatment-Resistant Depression in the Mid and Long-Term Run: Data from REAL-ESK Study Group
  • Trial | This retrospective, real-world study of ketamine for TRD use in Italy finds that 76.2% of patients responded or achieved remission at 6 months, with some late responders emerging at 12 months. Side effects, mainly sedation and dissociation, were common (71.8%) but decreased over time, with few discontinuations due to tolerability issues.
• Esketamine nasal spray versus quetiapine XR in adults with treatment-resistant depression: a secondary analysis of the ESCAPE-TRD randomized clinical trial | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | This secondary analysis of an open-label, single-blind, Phase IIIb trial (n=676) compares esketamine nasal spray plus an SSRI/SNRI versus extended-release quetiapine plus an SSRI/SNRI for treatment-resistant depression (TRD). It finds esketamine to be superior in achieving remission at week 8 (27.1% vs. 17.6%, p=0.003) and preventing relapse through week 32 (21.7% vs. 14.1%). Adverse events align with known safety profiles.
• A pilot study of ketamine among individuals with tobacco use disorder: tolerability and initial impact on tobacco use outcomes
  • Trial | This pilot study (n=10) tested whether ketamine could help people quit smoking. While the ketamine was safe to use with only temporary side effects, it didn’t show any significant effect on smoking behaviour, cravings, or withdrawal symptoms.
• A prospective ecological momentary assessment study of an ayahuasca retreat: exploring the salutary impact of acute psychedelic experiences on subacute affect and mindfulness skills in daily life
  • Trial | This observational trial (n=36) before and after a 4-day ayahuasca retreat measured effects on mood and mindfulness. After the retreat, participants showed better moods (more positive feelings, less negative feelings) and improved mindfulness skills in their daily lives. While intense experiences during the retreat (like altered perception of time/space and emotional breakthroughs) predicted better positive moods afterward, they didn’t affect negative moods or mindfulness.
• A randomized, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial of ketamine in Rett syndrome
  • Trial | This clinical trial (n=23) tested low-dose oral ketamine as a potential treatment for Rett syndrome (RTT) in young girls. The study used a crossover design where participants received either ketamine or placebo for 5 days, then switched treatments after a washout period. While ketamine proved safe and well-tolerated at both tested doses (0.75 and 1.5 mg/kg twice daily), it showed no clinical benefit over placebo in treating RTT symptoms.
• Magnesium level and impulsivity during ketamine administration for treatment-resistant mood disorders
  • Trial | This observational study (n=49) investigated whether magnesium levels correlated with impulsivity in treatment-resistant mood disorder patients receiving ketamine therapy. Despite measuring both magnesium levels and impulsivity (via BIS-11) across eight ketamine infusions over four weeks, no significant association was found between magnesium concentration and changes in impulsivity scores.
• Immersive exposure to simulated visual hallucinations modulates high-level human cognition
  • Trial | This trial (n=47) investigated how VR-simulated psychedelic visual effects (using DeepDream) influenced cognition, finding that simulated hallucinations improved cognitive flexibility (via reduced task-switching costs) but didn’t affect linguistic processing. The findings suggest that visual alterations alone can influence certain cognitive processes, even without actual psychedelic compounds.
• Long-Term Cognitive Outcomes of Esketamine Nasal Spray in Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Preliminary Report
  • Trial | This small clinical trial (n=8) of TRD patients shows that six months of adjunct esketamine nasal spray treatment improved cognitive performance across multiple domains while reducing depression severity, with no cognitive decline observed.
• Low dose oral ketamine treatment on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (OKTOP): An open-label pilot study
  • Trial | No information available yet
• From relaxed beliefs under psychedelics (REBUS) to revised beliefs after psychedelics (REBAS) | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | This single-blind (n=11) study with healthy participants shows that confidence in negative self-beliefs decreased after a high dose of psilocybin (25mg) which predicted increases in well-being four weeks later. This provides the first psychological (vs neurological) information on the validity of the REBUS model.
• Low-dose ketamine improved brain network integrity among patients with treatment-resistant depression and suicidal ideation
  • Trial | This randomized controlled trial (n=43) found ketamine (35mg/70kg) superior to midazolam in reducing depression (TRD) and suicidal ideation (SI), with corresponding increases in brain network connectivity in the thalamus and angular gyrus, suggesting these regions may mediate ketamine’s antidepressant effects.
• A pilot human study using ketamine to treat disorders of consciousness
  • Trial | This double-blind placebo-controlled crossover trial (n=3) examining ketamine in patients with disorders of consciousness found increased brain complexity and reduced muscle spasticity during ketamine infusion, though no changes in diagnostic status were observed.
• Compass Psychological Support Model for COMP360 Psilocybin Treatment of Serious Mental Health Conditions | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trail Protocol | Describes how the therapy (or as they like to call it – ‘support’) is implemented in the Compass trials.
• Psilocybin-assisted massed cognitive processing therapy for chronic posttraumatic stress disorder: Protocol for an open-label pilot feasibility trial
  • Trial Protocol | Study protocol (for this trial) examines the combination of psilocybin (25mg) with intensive cognitive processing therapy (CPT) for treating PTSD. The study will enrol 15 participants who will receive 12 CPT sessions and one psilocybin session over a week, with 12 weeks of follow-up monitoring using wearable devices, aiming to assess feasibility and safety before conducting a larger randomized controlled trial.
• Ayahuasca-assisted meaning reconstruction therapy for grief: a non-randomized clinical trial protocol
  • Trial Protocol | Study protocol (for this trial) to test whether ayahuasca combined with grief therapy might help people dealing with severe grief. The study will compare three groups: people receiving grief therapy plus ayahuasca, people receiving just grief therapy, and people receiving no treatment. Each group will have at least 23 participants who lost a close family member in the past year.
• Study Protocol for ‘PsilOCD: A Pharmacological Challenge Study Evaluating the Effects of the 5-HT2A Agonist Psilocybin on the Neurocognitive and Clinical Correlates of Compulsivity’
  • Trial Protocol | Study protocol (for this trial) (n=20) to investigate how low-dose psilocybin (10mg) affects cognitive flexibility and neuroplasticity in OCD patients through cognitive testing and EEG measurements, whilst also assessing the treatment’s feasibility for future larger-scale studies.
• A critical evaluation of psilocybin-assisted therapy protocol components from clinical trial patients, facilitators, and caregivers
  • Trial Evaluation | The study uses Enhanced Critical Incident Technique to analyse psilocybin-assisted therapy protocols for cancer patients (from this trial), identifying key areas for improvement and emphasising the need for personalised treatment approaches based on feedback from patients, caregivers, and therapists.
• Psychotic-Like Experiences in Young Recreational Users of Ketamine: A Case Study
  • Case Report | The case report looked at ten people who used ketamine regularly (3x p/w) and found “a significant positive correlation between the frequency of ketamine use and PLEs, with no significant impact from other substances like THC, MDMA, and alcohol.“
• Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy for Antisocial Personality Disorder: A Case Report
  • Case Report | The case report discusses one patient who used ketamine for antisocial personality disorder (ASPD). “A series of psycholytic (low dose) ketamine therapy sessions and other integrative approaches over the course of 3 years results in resolution of severe alcoholism, reduction in violent thoughts about people and the world, and a reduction in depression symptoms.“
• A Psilocybin Experience Gone Wrong: The Importance of Psychedelic Assisted Psychotherapy
  • Case Report | The authors “report the case of a patient who underwent a psilocybin experience without psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, resulting in inpatient psychiatric admission.“
• Treatment of neuropathic pain with repeated low-dose methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA): a case report
  • Case Report | Case report of an elderly patient who found relief from nerve pain after treatment with high doses of LSD and MDMA and subsequent microdoses of MDMA (within the Swiss PAT model).
• Oral Esketamine as Alternative for Maintenance Electroconvulsive Therapy in Patients With Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Case Series
  • Case Report | This case series (n=8) explored oral esketamine as an alternative to maintenance ECT in treatment-resistant depression patients. While five patients showed stability or improvement and four continued treatment, three patients’ symptoms worsened, requiring a return to ECT.
• A case of cardiac arrest following ketamine administration
  • Case Report | This case report described an 8-year-old heart surgery patient who suffered cardiac arrest after receiving ketamine for sedation during a routine procedure, though she was successfully resuscitated.
• Suicide of a patient shortly after psilocybin-assisted psychedelic therapy: A case report
  • Case Report | This case report describes a 60-year-old male with treatment-resistant depression who died by suicide three days after his fourth psilocybin-assisted therapy session, highlighting potential risks and challenges in treating complex psychiatric patients with psychedelics, particularly those with a history of psychotic symptoms and difficulties in forming therapeutic alliances.
• A case series of ibogaine toxicity reported to the United Kingdom National Poisons Information Service (NPIS) over a 10-year period
  • Case Report | This case series (n=7) analysing UK National Poisons Information Service data over a 10-year period found that individuals using ibogaine (primarily for heroin addiction and insomnia) experienced severe cardiac and neurological adverse effects, including cardiac arrest, seizures and coma.
• Towards culturally inclusive healthcare in Peru: Mapping epistemic concepts in contemporary Indigenous Amazonian medicine-Traditional healers’ perspectives
  • Interviews | This interview study with 13 traditional healers across three Peruvian-Amazon regions revealed a sophisticated Indigenous medical system involving “teacher plants” (psychoactive plants), highlighting potential insights for modern psychedelic therapy while emphasizing the need for better integration of traditional healing practices into Peru’s healthcare system to address ethnic health disparities.
• Cosmology of belonging: The role of community in the therapeutic use of psychedelics
  • Interviews | This study looked at how people who guide psychedelic experiences (‘facilitators’) view the importance of community in group psychedelic sessions. They interviewed 15 facilitators in the US and found that they considered community crucial at every stage – from why people choose to use psychedelics, through the actual experience, to making sense of it afterwards. The facilitators described how group sessions can help people feel they belong, be more authentic, build trust, and heal through shared experience.
• The Psych Behind Psychedelics: Exploring Hallucinogen Use as a Marker for Untreated Mental Health Disorders
  • Survey | Using data from the NSDUH survey and SAMHSA database, the researchers found that those “with mental illness or substance abuse issues were substantially more likely to use hallucinogens, the hallucinogen use greatly increased with the pandemic along with further mental health issues, and those who used hallucinogens were more significantly likely to abuse other illegal substances, primarily in a younger population.”
• Death Anxiety Among Users and Non-Users of Psychedelics
  • Survey | This survey in Brazil (n=517) shows psychedelic users report less death anxiety, likely because these substances can facilitate experiences of death transcendence. The ability to perceive existence beyond physical death, whether spiritually or symbolically, appears to reduce fear of dying rather than psychedelics themselves directly lowering death anxiety.
• Trends and characteristics in ketamine use among US adults with and without depression, 2015–2022
  • Survey | Analysing NSDUH survey data over seven years, the authors find that ketamine use increased significantly, rising 81.8% from 2015-2019 and 40% from 2021-2022. Initially, use increased among both depressed and non-depressed individuals, but later growth was mainly among non-depressed users. Recent users tend to be college-educated adults aged 26-34, and often use other substances, particularly MDMA and GHB.
• Illicit drug use among adolescents and young adults with impairments in the US: A cross-sectional analysis of the National Survey on Drug Use And Health
  • Survey | Analysing NSDUH survey data from 2022, the authors find that people with impairments were twice as likely to use illicit drugs (including psychedelics) and started using them earlier (age 16 versus 18) compared to those without impairments.
• Hepatic adverse events associated with ketamine and esketamine: A population-based disproportionality analysis
  • Survey | This study analyses FDA adverse event reporting data (FEARS) to assess whether ketamine or esketamine are associated with higher rates of liver-related problems compared to other drugs. It found mixed results but ultimately recommended regular liver function monitoring for patients using these medications.
• Psychological effects of psychedelics in adolescents
  • Survey | This pooled analysis of two surveys (adolescents & adults) finds that psychedelic use improved psychological well-being similarly in both age groups. However, adolescents reported more challenging experiences, ego-dissolution, and visual perception changes (HPPD symptoms) than adults, suggesting a potential need for age-specific considerations in therapeutic applications.
• Self-reported experiences and perspectives on using psychedelics to manage opioid use among participants of two Reddit communities
  • Survey | Analysis of Reddit data looks at 151 posts from 2018-2021 on user experiences with psychedelics for treating opioid use disorder (OUD), finding mixed perspectives on effectiveness but identifying potential mechanisms of action.
• Tripping in the Happiest Country of the World – Use Values of Psychedelics According to Finnish Users
  • Survey | This survey (n=40) of Finnish psychedelic users reveals that despite living in a country with high welfare standards, individuals seek out psychedelics for personal growth, mental health improvement, and meaningful experiences that they find difficult to access through conventional means.
• Trends in poisonings involving ketamine in the United States, 2019-2023
  • Survey | This study looked at ketamine poisoning cases reported to US Poison Centers from 2019 to 2023. Cases doubled from 205 to 414 during this period. Most involved swallowing ketamine (57.2%) and were due to misuse (36.2%). While suicide attempts using ketamine doubled and more people were swallowing it rather than using liquid forms, severe cases resulting in life-threatening effects or death decreased.
• Experimental Test of Perceptions of Psychedelics by Therapeutic and Recreational Use
  • Survey | This survey (n=309) examined public perceptions of psychedelics, finding that therapeutic use was viewed more favourably than recreational use. Those with prior psychedelic experience (40.7% of respondents) had more positive views of both therapeutic and recreational use, suggesting that public health messaging about psychedelics may need to be tailored based on previous exposure.
• Down the Rabbit Hole: A Large-Scale Survey of Psychedelic Users’ Patterns of Use and Perceived Effects
  • Survey | This US survey (n=1,486) shows MDMA, LSD, DMT, and psilocybin as the most commonly used psychedelics, primarily taken orally for recreation, with users reporting low distress from acute effects like hallucinations and increased heart rate, though some experienced residual effects like headaches and nausea.
• Oregon’s Emerging Psilocybin Services Workforce: A Survey of the First Legal Psilocybin Facilitators and Their Training Programs
  • Survey | This survey (n=106) of Oregon’s pioneering psilocybin facilitator training programs (mean tuition $9,359) finds that it has attracted a diverse workforce of healthcare professionals, though financial barriers exist, with facilitators planning to charge approximately $1,388 per session and specializing primarily in trauma, mental health, and spiritual applications.
• Efficacy and safety of psilocybin in the treatment of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD): A dose-response network meta-analysis of randomized placebo-controlled clinical trials
  • Meta-Analysis | Analysis of 3 studies with 389 patients on Psi-AT for MDD. Psilocybin helped reduce depression symptoms, with effects showing up after 8 days and becoming stronger by day 15. A 25mg dose worked best compared to other doses tested. While effective, psilocybin did increase the risk of side effects, especially nausea.
• Acute effects of psilocybin on attention and executive functioning in healthy volunteers: a systematic review and multilevel meta-analysis
  • Meta-Analysis | This meta-analysis (13 studies, 42 effect sizes) examined psilocybin’s acute effects on executive function and attention. Results showed that psilocybin significantly slowed reaction times but did not significantly affect accuracy, with dose-dependent effects. The findings suggest that whilst psilocybin impairs executive function processing speed, task performance accuracy is largely maintained, which has implications for both clinical applications and safety protocols.
• Esketamine Treatment for Depression in Adults: A PRISMA Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Meta-Analysis | This meta-analysis (s=87) reveals that esketamine as an add-on therapy shows only modest efficacy in treatment-resistant depression (comparable to atypical antipsychotics) and no significant effect on suicidality, whilst raising concerns about its abuse potential and long-term safety.
• Psychedelics in Psychiatry: Oh, What A Trip!
  • Editorial | Introduction to ‘The American Journal of Psychiatry’ which has a special issue on psychedelics (and quite the psychedelic cover). Many of the articles you see listed here in January are taken from this special issue.
• The Pain Gap: Epistemic Justice in Psychedelic Ethics
  • Editorial | Introduction to ‘The Americal Journal of Bioethics’ (AJoB) with reflections on pain and psychedelic ethics. Where the authors argue that “[e] expanding psychedelic medicine to include pain management not only broadens its therapeutic reach but also aligns with principles of epistemic justice.“
• Managing the Hope and Hype of Psychedelics
  • Editorial | This guest editorial for AJoB examines the current surge in psychedelic interest, comparing it to medical cannabis’s evolution in research and society. The author argues for balancing hope and hype in psychedelic research and development, emphasizing the need to overcome stigma and establish proper research frameworks, much like cannabis did.
• Ketamine: Therapeutic potential versus recreational misuse
  • Editorial | This editorial discusses the complex duality of ketamine in modern medicine, highlighting both its promising therapeutic potential for depression and other conditions whilst raising concerns about risks of misuse and adverse effects following Matthew Perry’s death, emphasising the need for careful clinical oversight and continued research into safety protocols.
• Foreword: Ecstasy, Molly, MDMA: What health practitioners need to know about this common recreational drug
  • Editorial | Introduction for ‘Disease-a-Month’ publication.
• Healing, Harms, and Humility: Expanding the Scope of Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy Research
  • Commentary | Researchers call for more research into “the implicit and explicit content and processes of psychotherapy in PAP.”
• Toward Translatable Biomarkers of Psychedelic-Induced Neuroplasticity
  • Commentary | David Olson comments on the search for biomarkers of psychedelic-induced neuroplasticity and how this could help support the stratification and efficacy of (psychedelic) medicines.
• Psychedelic Regulation Beyond the Controlled Substances Act: A Three-Dimensional Framework for Characterizing Policy Options
  • Commentary | Authors propose a framework that characterises psychedelics along three dimensions, 1) legality, 2) therapeutic intention, and 3) structure.
• Research and Implementation of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy in the Veterans Health Administration
  • Commentary | Discussion of steps that can be proactively taken at the VA for when (if) FDA approval of PATs happens.
• Sex and psychedelics: a wide-lens look at a burgeoning field
  • Commentary | Reflecting on three recent studies on psychedelics and sex, the authors argue “that taking account of sexuality as culturally produced, historically contingent and geographically specific would improve the reliability and efficacy of future studies.“
• Psychedelic Treatments in Adolescent Psychopharmacology: Considering Safety, Ethics, and Scientific Rigor
  • Commentary | The authors comment on the use of psychedelics and their rise in popularity among adolescents. They call for more research to be done on psychedelic therapies for adolescents.
• Informed Consent to Psychedelic Medicine
  • Commentary | The article discusses how standard medical informed consent practices need specific adaptations for psychedelic medicine. It emphasizes seven essential elements that practitioners should cover, ranging from warning patients about potential lasting perceptual changes and personality shifts to establishing clear boundaries for physical contact during treatment. The process also requires acknowledging potential exploitation risks, being transparent about research roles and data collection, disclosing practitioner credentials, and ensuring patient understanding through interactive methods.
• An initiative for living evidence synthesis in clinical psychedelic research
  • Commentary | The authors discuss using a systematic approach to starting a living review of the psychedelic literature.
• Critiquing Medical Exceptionalism: Toward a Transcultural Psychedelic Bioethics
  • Commentary | This commentary critiques the concept of medical exceptionalism in psychedelic therapy regulation, responding to Cohen and Marks’ discussion in AJOB. The author argues that favouring Western medical models could marginalize traditional and Indigenous healing practices that have long histories with psychedelics. The piece advocates for a more transcultural approach to psychedelic bioethics that acknowledges and incorporates diverse healing traditions rather than privileging exclusively Western biomedical frameworks.
• Psychedelic Ethics in Palliative Care
  • Commentary | This commentary from palliative care experts responds to Cohen and Marks’ article on psychedelic exceptionalism. The authors suggest that framing the debate around exceptionalism may distract from more important clinical and patient-centred considerations in palliative care. They argue for a more practical focus on applying established medical standards and priorities rather than philosophical categorization of psychedelic interventions.
• Embracing Epistemic Humility: Rethinking Psychedelic Exceptionalism Through Diverse Perspectives
  • Commentary | This commentary on Cohen and Marks’ article examines whether psychedelics warrant exceptional regulatory treatment compared to other drugs, noting that the answer depends on one’s perspective and frame of reference. The authors emphasize epistemic humility in approaching this question, acknowledging that positionality and perspective influence how we evaluate exceptionalism in Western medical practice.
• Holding Without Touch: Supportive Touch in Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy
  • Commentary | This article provides commentary on the article by Neitzke-Spruilla et al. on supportive touch.
• Focused Bodywork as Facilitated Communication: Cautionary Perspectives on Touch in Psychedelic Therapy
  • Commentary | This article provides commentary on the article by Neitzke-Spruilla et al. on supportive touch.
• Is There a Right to Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy?
  • Commentary | This commentary explores whether there is a moral right to access psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT). The author, Zak Kopeikin, presents a philosophical argument against restricting PAT only to those with approved psychiatric conditions.
• Psychedelics and Psychotherapy: What Can be Learned from a Historical Analysis of General Anesthesia and Surgery?
  • Commentary | This commentary by Stauffer examines the “psychedelic exceptionalism” debate by drawing parallels with the historical introduction of general anaesthesia in surgery. Using the first surgical use of anaesthesia in 1842 as a case study, the author suggests that current discussions about psychedelics’ unique status in medicine share noteworthy similarities with early debates about anaesthesia.
• Same Same but Different: On Psychedelic Exceptionalism
  • Commentary | This commentary identifies three cases of psychedelic exceptionalism: an empirically unjustified type-b exceptionalism, a misconceived type-a exceptionalism, and a justified type-b exceptionalism. The author aligns with Cohen and Marks’ view but notes Cheung et al.’s opposition to all forms of psychedelic exceptionalism. The key point is that while standard medical ethics apply to psychedelics, their unique features (particularly enhanced patient vulnerability) may warrant special policies – whether this is termed “exceptionalism” or “distinctiveness” is largely semantic.
• From Safe Touch to Sexual Abuse: Walking the Tightrope of Patient Safety in Psychedelic Therapy
  • Commentary | This commentary examines how the growth of psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) intersects with concerns about sexual abuse and patient safety. It analyses both Harrison et al.’s work on sexual misconduct in PAT and Cheung et al.’s discussion of psychedelic exceptionalism, focusing on how these perspectives inform patient protection frameworks. The commentary explores systemic vulnerabilities in PAT settings, particularly regarding power dynamics and the need for protective measures against sexual abuse.
• Excusing Psychedelics and Accommodating Psychedelics
  • Commentary | This commentary on Cheung et al. discusses the balance between maintaining standard medical ethics and developing specialised approaches for psychedelic therapy, arguing that whilst psychedelics shouldn’t receive exceptional treatment, they may require adapted tools to meet established medical standards.
• Ketamine and the Consequences of Positive Psychedelic Exceptionalism
  • Commentary | This commentary discusses Cheung et al. concerning ketamine’s significant role in analgesia and research, as well as its documented history of recreational use.
• Exceptional Stigma: Parallels Between Marginalized Groups and Psychedelic Medicine
  • Commentary | This commentary discusses Cheung et al. and how arguments against psychedelic exceptionalism parallel the historical treatment of marginalized groups in medicine, particularly focusing on gender-affirming care and trans healthcare. The authors compare how these different areas of medicine have faced similar challenges regarding stigma and exceptional treatment in medical contexts.
• Equipoise and Personal Experience: Maintaining Objectivity in Psychedelic Research
  • Commentary | This commentary argues that requiring psychedelic facilitators to have personal experience with psychedelics potentially compromises research equipoise – the ethical principle of maintaining neutrality in clinical trials. The authors advocate for including facilitators without personal psychedelic experience to reduce bias and maintain scientific objectivity in psychedelic research.
• From Theory to Practice: The Importance of Operationalizing and Measuring Ethical Touch in Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy
  • Commentary | This commentary on Neitzke-Spruill et al. discusses how to map out touch in PAT.
• Identity-Based Decisional Capacity and Psychedelic Treatments: Furthering the Case Against Psychedelic Ethical Exceptionalism
  • Commentary | This commentary discusses Cheung et al.’s arguments about psychedelic treatments being both epistemically and personally transformative, focusing on whether patients can achieve sufficient understanding to provide informed consent for psychedelic therapy.
• Psychedelic Exceptionalism, Indigeneity, and the War on Drugs: Antiracism and Decolonizing Psychedelic Plant Medicine
  • Commentary | This commentary discusses Cheung et al.’s rejection of psychedelic exceptionalism (the view that psychedelics require unique ethical treatment) while proposing that an antiracist and decolonial approach is necessary to address issues of colonisation, medicalisation and structural racism in psychedelic research and practice, particularly emphasizing the importance of acknowledging Indigenous roots and addressing systemic inequities in psychedelic medicine.
• Psychedelic Ethics Beside Institutions
  • Commentary | This commentary (reflecting on four of the articles in the AJoB) examines psychedelic ethics in relation to institutions and public spaces, arguing against reinventing bioethical frameworks and instead focusing on how psychedelic medicine interacts with existing institutional structures and regulatory systems.
• Measuring and Understanding the Meaning of Exceptionalism to Bolster Ethics Oversight of Psychedelics Research
  • Commentary | This commentary on Cohen & Marks & Cheung et al. discusses how to measure and understand psychedelic exceptionalism – the idea that psychedelics deserve special ethical consideration – to improve ethics oversight in psychedelic research while acknowledging that some aspects of psychedelics may indeed warrant unique regulatory approaches.
• Psychedelic Exceptionalism: The Oregon Example
  • Commentary | This commentary on Cohen & Marks examines psychedelic exceptionalism through the case study of Oregon’s legalization framework, discussing how treating psychedelics as uniquely privileged substances can perpetuate existing social inequities and potentially harm marginalized communities.
• Psychedelics in a Deregulated Policy Climate: What Might 2025 Bring?
  • Commentary | This commentary examines the potential consequences of psychedelic deregulation in 2025, warning that while increased access may benefit some communities, it could also lead to problematic commercialization, unsafe practices, and exploitation of indigenous medicines without proper oversight.
• High Hopes: Legal and Ethical Issues with Post-Trial Access to Psychedelic Drugs
  • Commentary | This commentary discusses how MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD treatment faces legal and ethical challenges as a Schedule I substance while highlighting the need for better clinical trial design and long-term patient support.
• Narrative Hermeneutics and Bioethics: Understanding the Psychedelic Value Changes
  • Commentary | This commentary explores how narrative hermeneutics (the interpretation of personal stories and meaning) can help understand and address the value and identity changes that people experience during psychedelic experiences.
• Letter to the Editor in Response to “Psychedelic Use by Sexual Minority Adults in the United States, 2022”
  • Commentary | Reaction and methodological critique on the mentioned article.
• How esketamine influences inflammatory cytokines, cortisol and anhedonia in TRD patients is an open question
  • Commentary | This letter to the editor comments on the (neurological) mechanisms of ketamine for TRD treatment.
• Integrating Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovations in Psychedelic and Brain Therapeutics
  • Commentary | This patent highlight discusses three key innovations: deuterated empathogens, AI-based digital therapeutics platforms, and AI/ML monitoring systems for wireless networks, showcasing the convergence of chemical, digital, and communication technologies in advancing healthcare solutions.
• Novel Pyrrolopyridine Compounds as 5-HT2A Agonists for Treating Mental Illnesses
  • Commentary | This patent highlight details new pyrrolopyridine compounds that act as 5-HT2A agonists, along with their pharmaceutical applications and synthesis methods for treating mental health conditions.
• Insights for the Next Generation of Ketamine for the Treatment of Depressive Disorder
  • Perspective | Ketamine helps treatment-resistant depression quickly. While the FDA only approves the S-form of ketamine, research suggests the R-form might work better as an antidepressant with less potential for abuse.
• Modifying Informed Consent to Help Address Functional Unmasking in Psychedelic Clinical Trials
  • Perspective | This ‘special communication’ discusses informed consent in psychedelic trials and the possibility of obscuring information about the study drug to prevent functional unblinding, though it also notes the ethical concerns that this raises.
• What should constitute a control condition in psychedelic drug trials?
  • Perspective | “When appropriate control conditions are lacking, it becomes difficult to disentangle placebo and expectation effects from medication effects.” So, the authors examine the options and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of these.
• Use of psychedelic treatments in psychiatric clinical practice: an EPA policy paper
  • Perspective | This policy paper presents the perspective of the European Psychiatric Association (EPA) around psychedelics and proposes four recommendations.
• The Psychosocial Environment as Therapeutic Context: Family-Centered Approaches to Adolescent Psychedelic Research
  • Perspective | No information available.
• Psychedelic-assisted therapy – supposedly paradigm-shifting research with poor attempts at hypotheses falsifying and questionable ethics
  • Perspective | “In the case of PAT, precisely because of its billing as paradigm-shifting research and the difficulty in falsifying hypothesis, the research must maintain impeccable ethical standards.“
• My Bad, You Got This: witnessing, therapist attitude and the synergy between psychedelics and inner healing intelligence in the treatment of trauma
  • Perspective | The author reflects on the ‘inner healing intelligence’ model employed in the MAPS/Lykos trials. The therapist’s trust in the treatment model, combined with enhanced trust from medication, helps trauma survivors feel witnessed. This parallels relational psychoanalysis, where trusting one’s inner healing capacity is similar to trusting the therapeutic relationship.
• Supportive Touch in Psychedelic Assisted Therapy
  • Perspective | The authors reflect on the Lykos trials and discuss the ethics around touch in psychedelic treatments. They advocate for a precautionary approach to harm-reduction but wouldn’t want touch to be dismissed outright.
• Psychedelic Medicine Exceptionalism
  • Perspective | This perspective by Cohen and Marks (which the commentaries above refer to) frames the core debate about “psychedelic exceptionalism” – whether psychedelic medicines deserve special regulatory and ethical frameworks distinct from other medical treatments, or whether they should be evaluated and regulated using standard medical frameworks. This question has become especially relevant as psychedelic medicine research experiences a renaissance.
• Distinctive But Not Exceptional: The Risks of Psychedelic Ethical Exceptionalism
  • Perspective | This perspective by Cheung et al. examines whether psychedelic medicines deserve special regulatory and ethical treatment compared to other medical interventions or if they should be evaluated using standard medical frameworks.
• Wolves Among Sheep: Sexual Violations in Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy
  • Perspective | This perspective by Harrison et al. examines critical challenges in integrating psychedelic therapy into Western medical practice, with a particular focus on power dynamics and sexual abuse concerns. The authors analyse therapeutic models and ethical implications of altered consciousness states and propose frameworks for safer practice and regulation.
• Peyote and the Native American Church: A Sacred Medicine at the Crossroads of Tradition, Conservation, and Modern Psychedelic Culture
  • Perspective | Peyote, a sacred cactus central to Native American Church ceremonies, faces threats from overharvesting, habitat loss, and cultural appropriation amid growing Western interest in psychedelics. This creates tension between Indigenous spiritual rights, conservation needs, and modern psychedelic culture, requiring balanced solutions that protect both the plant and Indigenous practices.
• Bringing MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD to traditional healthcare systems: tending to set and setting
  • Perspective | The authors “describe the importance of set and setting in MDMA-AT for PTSD and outline the advantages and challenges of implementing this novel intervention in large healthcare settings such as the Veterans Health Administration (VHA).”
• Psychedelics for health
  • Perspective | “A wave of studies and recent regulatory approvals have renewed interest in the health applications of psychedelics. Talha Burki reports.”
• Psilocybin: From Psychiatric Pariah to Perceived Panacea
  • Review | Investigating the research up to the end of 2023, the reviewers conclude “The evidence is currently insufficient to recommend psilocybin with PST as a psychiatric treatment.” and “Head-to-head comparisons with other evidence-based treatments will better inform the potential future role of psilocybin with PST in the treatment of major psychiatric disorders.“
• MDMA and MDMA-Assisted Therapy
  • Review | The authors discuss the clinical (vs recreational) evidence of MDMA-assisted therapy and the neurobiological mechanisms underlying its therapeutic effect.
• Benefits and Challenges of Ultra-Fast, Short-Acting Psychedelics in the Treatment of Depression
  • Review | Researchers from Maastricht University discuss 5-MeO-DMT and DMT and the potential benefits of this type of ‘rapid’ treatment. Although promising, no large trials have been conducted with these molecules (yet).
• Primum Non Nocere: The Onus to Characterize the Potential Harms of Psychedelic Treatment
  • Review | “First, Do No Harm.” The reviewers cover “the literature on the known and potential harms, including enduring perceptual disturbances; triggering or enhancing the risk for onset of mania or psychosis; overuse, misuse, and dependence; challenging experiences or “bad trips”; risks associated with increased neuroplastic potential; and acute and cumulative cardiovascular effects.”
• Psychedelics for the Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders: Interpreting and Translating Available Evidence and Guidance for Future Research
  • Review | A full review of the psychedelic literature with an eye toward future research and the development of psychedelic treatments.
• The diverse effects of ketamine, a jack-of-all-trades: a narrative review
  • Review | A review of the literature on ketamine’s medical use, from anaesthetic to antidepressant.
• Beyond NMDA Receptors: A Narrative Review of Ketamine’s Rapid and Multifaceted Mechanisms in Depression Treatment
  • Review | The authors attempt to map out the mechanisms through which ketamine works but also find significant gaps in the literature (or that our understanding of ketamine’s mechanisms is still evolving).
• Exploring Therapeutic Potentials and Pathways of Psychedelics in Alzheimer’s Disease-Related Dementia
  • Review | Beyond mental health, psychedelics are also being investigated for neurodegenerative disorders, here the authors look at Alzheimer’s specifically.
• Clinical and preclinical evidence of psilocybin as antidepressant. A narrative review
  • Review | Review of both clinical and animal research on psilocybin for depression.
• Pain and Perception: Exploring Psychedelics as Novel Therapeutic Agents in Chronic Pain Management
  • Review | “[T]he review details the pharmacologic actions of psychedelics, their effects on chronic pain syndromes such as cancer pain, migraines, and neuropathic pain, and their clinical implications.“
• Neurobiological mechanisms of antidepressant properties of psilocybin: A systematic review of blood biomarkers
  • Review | Reviews biomarkers of the antidepressant effects of psilocybin in nine studies, but all of them on healthy subjects. The review does find possible reduced inflammation markers and likely increased levels of neurotrophic factors.
• Exploring Psychedelics Pharmacology: A Scoping Review Charting the Course of Psilocybin Pharmacokinetics
  • Review | The review included data from five studies and notes information on the pharmacokinetics (how it moves through the body) of psilocybin/psilocin. The authors note that data is not present about patient populations with depression or cancer (just like in the study above).
• Psychedelics and connectedness to natural and social worlds: An examination of the evidence and a proposed conceptual framework
  • Review | Psychedelics can increase both nature-relatedness and social connectedness through ego dissolution and enhanced emotional processing. While evidence is promising, current research has limitations due to methodological issues. The effects can be understood through perceptual, emotional, and epistemic dimensions, with different patterns during and after the psychedelic experience.
• Clinical Pharmacokinetics of Psilocin After Psilocybin Administration: A Systematic Review and Post-Hoc Analysis
  • Review | After oral administration, psilocybin quickly converts to psilocin, which shows rapid distribution throughout the body with a half-life of 1.23-4.72 hours. Only a small percentage is excreted unchanged, with most being metabolized. Results were consistent across studies, though data on bioavailability is limited.
• Demographic and clinical predictors of response and remission in the treatment of major depressive disorder with ketamine and esketamine: A systematic review
  • Review | This review of 44 studies examining predictors of (es)ketamine response in depression found limited predictive value for most demographic and clinical variables. Some positive associations were found with anhedonia, sleep issues, childhood trauma, obesity, and certain cognitive traits, while negative associations included melancholic depression and benzodiazepine use.
• Ecstasy, molly, MDMA: What health practitioners need to know about this common recreational drug
  • Review | This review for healthcare providers examines MDMA’s legal status, use patterns, and therapeutic potential. Key findings: MDMA affects multiple neurotransmitter systems (dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin), causing euphoria and prosocial effects but also risks like hyperthermia and post-use mood changes. Frequent adulterants in illicit MDMA increase treatment complexity.
• Redefining Ketamine Pharmacology for Antidepressant Action: Synergistic NMDA and Opioid Receptor Interactions?
  • Review | “[T]he authors argue that ketamine’s pharmacology should be redefined to include opioid receptors and the endogenous opioid system. They also highlight a potential mechanism of action of ketamine for depression that is attributed to bifunctional, synergistic interactions involving NMDA and opioid receptors.“
• Fibromyalgia: do I tackle you with pharmacological treatments?
  • Review | Discusses fibromyalgia treatments and briefly covers ketamine as an option.
• Mechanisms of action of antidepressive pharmacotherapy: brain and mind-body and environment
  • Review | Review in German of mechanisms of psychedelics (including ketamine) and other antidepressants.
• Exploring the Potential of Psychedelics in the Treatment of Headache Disorders: Clinical Considerations and Exploratory Insights
  • Review | This review examines psychedelics (specifically LSD and psilocybin) as potential treatments for headache disorders, particularly migraines and cluster headaches.
• Myelin Repair as a Novel Mechanism for Ketamine’s Sustained Antidepressant Effects
  • Review | This review explores how ketamine’s rapid antidepressant effects may work through repairing myelin damage in the brain, highlighting the role of oligodendrocytes and myelination in depression, particularly relevant given that ketamine shows efficacy in treatment-resistant cases where conventional antidepressants fail.
• Psychedelics: Safety and Efficacy
  • Review | Recent interest in psychedelic research is growing amongst medical institutions. Still, there are concerns about the quality and focus of existing studies, particularly regarding safety and efficacy data needed to support the potential rescheduling of these substances from their current Schedule I status.
• Clinical Pharmacokinetics of Psilocin After Psilocybin Administration: A Systematic Review and Post-Hoc Analysis
  • Review | This review shows that when psilocybin is taken orally, it quickly converts to psilocin in the body, which is then rapidly processed and eliminated, with consistent results across multiple studies that examined how the drug moves through the human body.
• Effects of psychedelics on opioid use disorder: a scoping review of preclinical studies
  • Review | This review suggests that while certain psychedelics like ibogaine and ketamine show promise in treating opioid use disorder based on animal studies, more research is needed on a broader range of substances, particularly focusing on safety and effectiveness in human trials.
• Clinical Pharmacokinetics of N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT): A Systematic Review and Post-hoc Analysis
  • Review | This review shows that DMT is quickly processed and eliminated by the human body when administered intravenously, but existing research is limited and lacks important details needed to understand how different dosing methods affect individuals differently.
• Catalyst for change: Psilocybin’s antidepressant mechanisms—A systematic review
  • Review | This review reveals that psilocybin’s potential antidepressant effects appear to work through multiple pathways, combining brain chemistry changes with psychological benefits, particularly when administered in a supportive therapeutic environment.
• A Field-Wide Review and Analysis of Study Materials Used in Psilocybin Trials: Assessment of Two Decades of Research
  • Review | This review examines how psilocybin research studies prepare and inform participants, finding that while safety information is consistently emphasized across different studies, the varying content and presentation of this information might unintentionally influence participants’ expectations about their experiences.
• Uncovering Psychedelics: From Neural Circuits to Therapeutic Applications
  • Review | This review examines how psychedelics work in the brain, highlighting their ability to change brain connectivity patterns and increase neural plasticity, which may explain their therapeutic potential in treating conditions like PTSD, depression, and anxiety.
• Exploring DMT: Endogenous Role and Therapeutic Potential
  • Review | This review examines DMT’s presence in biological systems, suggesting it may be more than just a psychedelic compound but potentially a critical signalling molecule involved in various biological processes like neuroplasticity, stress response, and cellular protection. The findings challenge earlier assumptions about DMT’s trace presence in mammals and point to its possible role as a neurotransmitter.
• N, N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in rodent brain: Concentrations, distribution, and recent pharmacological data
  • Review | This review proposes that DMT may be more than just a psychedelic compound – it could be an endogenous signalling molecule that acts as the natural ligand for intracellular 5-HT2a receptors, which serotonin cannot reach. This hypothesis is supported by DMT’s role in neuroplasticity, its presence during brain development, and its increased levels during stress, suggesting it serves important biological functions beyond its known psychedelic effects.
• Effects of psychedelics on opioid use disorder: a scoping review of preclinical studies
  • Review | This review looks at whether psychedelic drugs might help treat people addicted to opioids (like heroin or prescription painkillers). Lab studies with animals show promising results, especially with drugs like ibogaine and ketamine, which helped reduce drug-seeking behaviour and withdrawal symptoms. However, most research has focused on ibogaine-related compounds, which might be risky for the heart.
• A systematic review of participant diversity in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy trials
  • Review | This review analysed diversity in clinical trials of psychedelic therapy (using psilocybin and MDMA), examining 21 studies with 1,034 total participants. The findings showed significant underrepresentation of Black and Hispanic participants compared to US population levels. While studies consistently reported participants’ gender and race/ethnicity, they rarely included information about sexual orientation or immigration status, and none reported gender identity.
• Ketamine and Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy for Psychiatric and Existential Distress in Patients with Serious Medical Illness: A Narrative Review
  • Review | This review examined ketamine’s use for treating psychiatric and existential distress in seriously ill patients receiving palliative care. Analysis of 9 studies and 12 case reports indicated that ketamine can provide quick, though temporary, relief from psychiatric symptoms, with a good safety profile.
• Psychedelics and connectedness to natural and social worlds: An examination of the evidence and a proposed conceptual framework
  • Review | This review explores how psychedelics may increase both nature connectedness and social bonds through self-expansion mechanisms – particularly ego dissolution and enhanced emotional processing. While evidence appears promising, the authors highlight methodological limitations and propose a new framework examining connectedness across perceptual, emotional, and epistemic dimensions.
• Toxicodynamic insights of 2C and NBOMe drugs – Is there abuse potential?
  • Review | This review analysed how synthetic psychedelic drugs called 2C and NBOMe work in the brain, focusing on their effects on serotonin and their potential for misuse.
• That men should put an enemy in their mouths to steal away their brains: Reconsidering the origins of model psychosis
  • Review | This historical analysis explored how the long-standing comparison between drug-induced states and mental illness has shaped our understanding of psychosis and modern psychiatric treatment approaches (including psychedelics).
• Psychedelic-Induced Neural Plasticity: A Comprehensive Review and a Discussion of Clinical Implications
  • Review | This pre-print review analysed 70 studies on psychedelics, finding evidence for their ability to promote brain plasticity, though questions remain about separating these benefits from their hallucinogenic effects.
• The ketamine chameleon: history, pharmacology, and the contested value of experience
  • Review | This review explores how different clinical settings and frameworks have shaped varying interpretations of ketamine’s effects – from viewing it as a dissociative anesthetic to seeing it as a potentially therapeutic psychedelic agent.
• The role of ketamine and its enantiomer in managing depression and pain in cancer patients: A narrative review
  • Review | This review shows that while ketamine and esketamine at sub-anesthetic doses effectively manage postoperative depression and acute pain in cancer patients via intravenous administration, evidence for non-IV routes and chronic cancer pain remains limited or inconsistent.
• Mushrooms, Microdosing, and Mental Illness: The Effect of Psilocybin on Neurotransmitters, Neuroinflammation, and Neuroplasticity
  • Review | This review highlights psilocin’s therapeutic potential through multiple mechanisms – serotonergic activity, anti-inflammatory effects, enhanced neuroplasticity, and DMN modulation – noting benefits at both traditional therapeutic doses and microdoses for mood disorders and potentially other inflammation-related conditions.
• Exploring Psilocybe cubensis Strains: Cultivation Techniques, Psychoactive Compounds, Genetics and Research Gaps
  • Review | This review examines how genetic diversity and environmental factors influence psilocybin production in Psilocybe cubensis strains, highlighting recent advances in cultivation and analysis methods while identifying knowledge gaps due to historical research restrictions.
• Psychedelic-assisted treatment for substance use disorder: A narrative systematic review
  • Review | This systematic review (s=37, n=2035) examining psychedelic-assisted treatments for substance use disorders found that psilocybin showed the strongest evidence for treating alcohol use disorder (AUD), whilst highlighting the need for improved research methodology and safety reporting in future studies.
• Psychedelics in neuroinflammation: Mechanisms and therapeutic potential
  • Review | This review examines how psychedelics like psilocybin, LSD, and DMT influence neuroinflammation through various receptor systems and signalling pathways, suggesting their potential therapeutic value in treating neurodegenerative and psychiatric conditions.
• Impact of psychedelics on craving in addiction: A systematic review
  • Review | This systematic review (s=31, n=2639) examining psychedelics’ effects on substance craving found preliminary evidence for anti-craving properties, though methodological limitations in most studies suggest the need for more rigorous research to confirm these findings.
• Evaluating the potential for psilocybin as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder
  • Review | This review examines psilocybin’s potential as a PTSD treatment, discussing its antidepressant and anxiolytic effects in research, proposed mechanisms of action, and therapeutic considerations, given the limitations of current PTSD treatments which have nonresponse rates exceeding 50%.
• Is there a risk of esketamine misuse in clinical practice?
  • Review | This review finds that intranasal esketamine has demonstrated a favourable safety profile in treating treatment-resistant depression, with four years of clinical data showing effectiveness without significant evidence of abuse, addiction, or misuse, even in high-risk populations with substance use disorders.
• MDMA-Assisted Therapy: Challenges, Clinical Trials, and the Future of MDMA in Treating Behavioural Disorders
  • Review | No information available.
• Investigating novel pharmacological strategies for treatment-resistant depression: focus on new mechanisms and approaches
  • Review | This review examines novel therapeutic approaches for treatment-resistant depression, highlighting the emergence of rapid-acting compounds like esketamine and psilocybin, while discussing how advanced omics technologies could help identify new therapeutic targets and enable more personalised treatments.
• Psychedelics as moral bioenhancers: Protocol for a scoping review of ethical arguments for and against
  • Review Protocol | This review protocol outlines a systematic approach to examine ethical arguments about using psychedelics for moral bioenhancement. The study will follow JBI methodology to search multiple databases, focusing on voluntary use by adults, and will analyze both published and unpublished sources that present explicit ethical arguments on this topic.
• Guruism and Cultic Social Dynamics in Psychedelic Practices and Organisations
  • Academic Book Chapter | Jules Evans and Joseph Holcomb Adams explore “the risks of guruism [the tendency to look to a particular revered individual as a teacher or mentor] and cultic social dynamics in organisations that work with psychedelic drugs.”
• Ketamine, from Anaesthetic to Drug Abuse
  • Academic Book Chapter | Outlines ketamine’s history since 1965 as both a recreational drug and anaesthetic, discussing its effects, abuse potential, and role in psychosis research while emphasizing its risks of brain damage and psychological harm.
• Subanesthetic Ketamine Ameliorates Activity-Based Anorexia of Adult Mice
  • In Mice | Psychedelics (including ketamine) are being researched in relation to helping those with anorexia (AN). An animal model of AN (activity-based anorexia, ABA) is tested in mice. The “findings suggest that ketamine may reduce adult females’ vulnerability to ABA and may protect women from AN relapse by reducing hyperactivity.“
• Esketamine alleviates LPS-induced depression-like behavior by activating Nrf2-mediated anti-inflammatory response in adolescent mice
  • In Mice | Testing the effects of esketamine on ‘Lipopolysaccharide-induced’ (LPS) depression like symptoms in mice. One dose of esketamine helped reduce depression-like behaviours. It worked by increasing a protective protein (Nrf2) and decreasing inflammation markers in key brain regions and throughout the body. When researchers blocked Nrf2, esketamine’s anti-depression and anti-inflammation effects were lost, showing that Nrf2 is crucial for how esketamine works.
• Single-nucleus transcriptomics reveals time-dependent and cell-type-specific effects of psilocybin on gene expression
  • In Mice | This study in mice cells reveals that psilocybin and ketamine cause similar, time-dependent changes in gene expression in different brain cell types, which may explain their lasting effects on neural circuits and behaviour.
• Polymer-based vaccines for substance use disorders: Targeting ketamine and methamphetamine with protein-free hyperbranched polyethyleneimine carriers
  • In Mice | This study in mice describes testing a new vaccine approach for treating drug addiction by using polymer-based carriers to generate antibodies against ketamine and methamphetamine. The mice showed positive results, with the vaccines producing antibodies that could neutralize the drugs’ effects (like their pain-relieving properties and rewarding effects measured through conditioned place preference tests) for 3-4 months, without causing harmful side effects.
• S-ketamine alleviates morphine-induced hyperalgesia via decreasing the gut Enterobacteriaceae levels: Comparison with R-ketamine
  • In Mice | This study in mice showed that changes in gut bacteria play a role in developing increased pain sensitivity from opioid use. When gut bacteria were removed, mice didn’t develop this problem. S-ketamine (but not R-ketamine) helped prevent this pain sensitivity, likely by reducing certain gut bacteria (Enterobacteriaceae). This suggests gut bacteria might be important in how ketamine helps treat opioid-related pain problems.
• Persistent large-scale changes in alternative splicing in prefrontal cortical neuron types following psychedelic exposure
  • In Mice | This pre-print mouse study investigated how a single dose of psychedelics affects brain cell function at the molecular level, focusing on the medial prefrontal cortex. The researchers found that while psychedelics caused only small changes in which genes were active, they dramatically altered how these genes were processed (through alternative splicing) for at least a month. These changes particularly affected the structure around brain cells, how nerve cells communicate, and the function of a specific type of inhibitory neuron (parvalbumin interneurons).
• Mice Lacking the Serotonin Transporter do not Respond to the Behavioural Effects of Psilocybin
  • In Mice | This mouse study found that mice lacking the serotonin transporter protein did not show typical behavioural responses to psilocybin, suggesting this protein is crucial for the drug’s effects.
• Esketamine alleviates depressive-like behavior in neuropathic pain mice through the METTL3-GluA1 pathway
  • In Mice | This mouse study demonstrates that esketamine reduces depressive-like behaviour in neuropathic pain through increasing METTL3 and GluA1 levels, with METTL3 promoting m6A modification and enhancing synaptic GluA1 expression.
• The psychoplastogens ibogaminalog and ibogainalog induce antidepressant-like activity in naïve and depressed mice by mechanisms involving 5-HT2A receptor activation and serotonergic transmission
  • In Mice | This mouse study demonstrates that ibogainalog and ibogaminalog produce sustained antidepressant-like effects lasting up to 72 hours through serotonin-dependent mechanisms, particularly via 5-HT2A receptor activation, with ibogainalog showing the highest selectivity for serotonin transporters.
• Effects of psilocybin on mouse brain microstructure
  • In Mice | This mouse study demonstrates that diffusion MRI can detect psilocybin-induced microstructural brain changes, particularly in the frontal association cortex, primary visual cortex, striatum, and hippocampus, at 24-72 hours post-administration, suggesting potential utility for monitoring therapeutic responses.
• Lack of antidepressant-like effect of imipramine, fluoxetine and ketamine in the forced swim test in mice: How much standardization does a positive control require?
  • In Mice | No information available yet.
• Efficacy of fluoxetine and (R,S)-ketamine in attenuating conditioned fear behaviors in male mice
  • In Mice | This mice study suggests combined ketamine-fluoxetine treatment reduces fear memory at 2 weeks post-conditioning, while fluoxetine alone was most effective for fear generalisation, highlighting potential new therapeutic approaches for PTSD where current treatments show limited efficacy.
• Esketamine-mediated alleviation of electroconvulsive shock-induced memory impairment is associated with the regulation of mGluR5 in depressive-like rats
  • In Rats | What if esketamine can help prevent memory impairment that is caused by electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)? This rat study find supportive evidence, revealing “that a low dose of esketamine administration upregulated the expression of mGluR5 and NMDAR1 in the hippocampus of stressed rats, alleviated ECS-induced cognitive impairment, and ameliorated depressive-like behavior.”
• Early psilocybin intervention alleviates behavioral despair and cognitive impairment in stressed Wistar rats
  • In Rats | In a test where chronic stress is applied to rats, “psilocybin significantly reduced stress-induced behavioral despair and cognitive impairments, likely through ECS-mediated downregulation of the HPA axis.“
• NMDA receptors antagonists alleviated the acute phase of traumatic brain injury
  • In Rats | This study compared the effects of two NMDA receptor antagonists (ketamine and memantine) on brain injury in rats, finding that both drugs showed protective effects but through different mechanisms. Memantine proved more effective overall, reducing oxidative stress markers and inflammation, whilst ketamine increased anti-oxidant activity but had a limited impact on oxidative stress.
• Time-Dependent Molecular Changes Following MDMA-Induced Nephrotoxicity
  • In Rats | This study in rats found that a single dose of MDMA (ecstasy) temporarily affected kidney function and altered certain biological markers, particularly reducing levels of inflammatory proteins (TNF-α and TGF-β) and genes related to cell death. However, it didn’t cause visible kidney damage or significant cell death.
• Esketamine at a Clinical Dose Attenuates Cerebral Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury by Inhibiting AKT Signaling Pathway to Facilitate Microglia M2 Polarization and Autophagy
  • In Rats | This rat and cell study demonstrated that esketamine, especially when combined with rapamycin, protected against brain injury from reduced blood flow by promoting beneficial changes in immune cells and cellular cleaning processes.
• Elucidating the Phase I metabolism of psilocin in vitro
  • In Cells | Using human enzymes, the researchers map out the metabolism (Phase I) of psilocybin. The study “sheds novel insights on Phase I metabolic pathway of psilocin and illuminated the importance of MAO-A-mediated hepatic and extrahepatic clearances of psilocin.“
• MDMA and tramadol or tapentadol co-administration causes serotonin-independent neurological damage
  • In Cells | This cell-based study found that combining MDMA with tramadol or tapentadol caused cell damage through various mechanisms but surprisingly did not increase serotonin levels more than MDMA alone, suggesting that serotonin toxicity may not be the primary concern with these drug combinations.
• Molecular insights into the modulation of the 5HT2A receptor by serotonin, psilocin, and the G protein subunit Gqα
  • In Cells (simulation) | This molecular simulation study revealed how serotonin and psilocin interact with a key brain receptor (5HT2AR), providing insights that could help develop new psychiatric medications.
• An Educational Intervention on the Efficacy of Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy for Anxiety
  • Thesis | This thesis evaluated an educational program for mental health professionals about using ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (KAP) to treat severe anxiety. At a clinic in southern Arizona, four mental health providers received training about KAP’s effectiveness for anxiety disorders. After the training, the providers showed better understanding of KAP’s benefits and were more likely to recommend it for anxiety patients who hadn’t responded to standard treatments.
• Evaluating Group Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy for Treatment-Resistant Depression and Trauma-Related Symptoms
  • Thesis | This thesis evaluated different formats of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (KAP) at a Southwest treatment clinic from 2021 to 2024. The study compared group sessions versus individual sessions versus a mix of both. Group KAP worked best for trauma symptoms and moderately well for depression but didn’t significantly affect suicidal thoughts. Importantly, all three formats (group, individual, or mixed) showed similar overall effectiveness, suggesting clinics can be flexible in how they deliver KAP without compromising its benefits.
• Enhancing Provider Education on the Concomitant Use of Psychedelic Substances and Psychotropic Medications
  • Thesis | This thesis evaluated an educational program to teach healthcare providers about interactions between psychedelic drugs (LSD, psilocybin, and MDMA) and psychiatric medications, along with harm reduction strategies. While the study aimed to help providers better understand and discuss these interactions with patients, only one provider participated, making it impossible to draw broad conclusions.
• Effects of psychedelic drug use on neurocognitive function: An international online study
  • Thesis | This thesis studied whether long-term use of hallucinogens affects cognitive abilities by comparing users and non-users in online tests of memory, attention, and visual perception. The results showed no significant differences between the groups in test performance after statistical corrections, though hallucinogen users had some slight differences in reaction times.
• Safety, pharmacology, and subjective effects of LSD, psilocybin, MDMA and its enantiomers
  • Thesis | This thesis examined psychedelic drug safety and pharmacology through three studies: LSD-MDMA combination effects, psilocybin dosing safety (15-30mg), and MDMA enantiomer comparisons, revealing key insights about drug interactions, safety profiles, and differential pharmacological effects.
• Health Care Resource Use and Medical Costs Among Patients With Major Depressive Disorder and Acute Suicidal Ideation or Behavior Initiated on Esketamine Nasal Spray or Traditional Treatments in the United States
  • Health Economics | This study compared healthcare costs and hospital usage for depressed, suicidal patients using different treatments: esketamine nasal spray, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), antipsychotics with antidepressants, or antidepressants alone. Esketamine showed better results than ECT or combined antipsychotic treatment, with: 1) Less hospital/emergency care usage, 2) Lower medical costs, and 3) Biggest reduction in costs compared to pre-treatment levels. While antidepressants alone were cheapest, esketamine appeared to be a cost-effective option for this high-risk group.
• Mental Health-Related Disability Days and Costs Among Patients with Treatment-Resistant Depression Initiated on Esketamine Nasal Spray and Conventional Therapies in the USA
  • Health Economics | This study analysed healthcare data from 2016-2023 to compare how different treatments for hard-to-treat depression affected work disability. They looked at esketamine nasal spray versus three conventional treatments (ECT, TMS, and antipsychotic medications). After 6 months, patients on esketamine showed trends toward fewer disability days and lower costs (saving about $312 per month).

Psychedelic Research in February 2025

February 2025 built upon January’s momentum with diverse psychedelic research. Whilst ketamine and esketamine continued featuring prominently, February saw an increased focus on psilocybin’s effects on depression, alcohol use disorder, and cognitive processing. Several studies demonstrated esketamine’s efficacy for postpartum depression following caesarean delivery, with one trial showing it nearly halved depression rates at 6 weeks.

The month highlighted significant mechanistic research, with multiple studies investigating precise neural pathways through which psychedelics operate. Notably, multiple trials examined ketamine’s effects on brain connectivity in depression and its impact on mismatch negativity signals as potential biomarkers for treatment response.

Safety research remained prominent, with studies examining potential risks of repeated ketamine use on urinary function and investigations of hallucinogen persisting perception disorder. Several case reports documented conditions like ketamine cholangiopathy (chronic liver disease) and psychedelic-induced adverse effects.

The field showed increasing interest in personalised approaches, with research exploring sex differences in psychedelic effects and AI-driven models for treatment selection. February also witnessed growing attention to cultural considerations in psychedelic therapy, with analyses highlighting the need for greater cultural humility in treatment protocols.

• Symptom modulation and tolerability of intravenous ketamine in treatment-resistant bipolar depression: A retrospective study
  • Trial | This clinical study (n=59) found that ketamine (56mg/70kg IV) effectively reduced depressive symptoms in treatment-resistant bipolar disorder patients without triggering manic episodes, showing particular improvements in internal tension, sleep, and suicidal ideation over a four-week period.
• Examining the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic interaction of N,N-dimethyltryptamine and harmine in healthy volunteers: Α factorial dose-escalation study | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | This single-blind, two-arm dose-finding study (n=16) investigated the pharmacokinetic interactions between DMT and harmine, finding that their combination produced reliable dose-dependent effects lasting 4-5 hours, with bidirectional pharmacokinetic interactions between the compounds and a favourable safety profile.
• Effect of Low-Dose Ketamine Infusion in the Intensive Care Unit on Postoperative Opioid Consumption and Traumatic Memories After Hospital Discharge: A Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Trial | This randomized controlled trial (n=118) found that while low-dose ketamine reduced postoperative fentanyl requirements in ICU patients by 15%, it was associated with increased frightening and delusional memories when assessed approximately 3.5 years after discharge.
• Is ketamine efficacious for rapid treatment of acute suicidal ideation in an emergency setting? Lessons learned from a pilot randomized controlled trial
  • Trial | This double-blind randomised controlled trial (n=36) compared ketamine (35mg/70kg) with midazolam for treating severe suicidal ideation in Iranian inpatients, finding that while both treatments significantly reduced suicidal thoughts at 12 and 24 hours, there were no significant differences between the groups.
• Intraoperative Esketamine and Postpartum Depression Among Women With Cesarean Delivery: A Randomized Clinical Trial
  • Trial | This randomized clinical trial (n=308) found that a single dose of esketamine (17.5mg/70kg) during cesarean delivery nearly halved the rate of postpartum depression at 6 weeks compared to placebo (10.4% vs 19.5%).
• Ketamine Alters Tuning of Neural and Behavioral Spatial Working Memory Precision
  • Trial | This pre-print ketamine study (n=40) in healthy humans demonstrates how NMDAR antagonism impairs spatial working memory by broadening neural spatial tuning and reducing brain activation across multiple regions, with tuning changes correlating with individual performance differences.
• Psilocybin alters visual contextual computations | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | This pre-print, multimodal study (n=18) investigates psilocybin’s (5mg and 10mg) effects on perception and brain dynamics using psychophysics, ultra-high field fMRI, and computational modelling.
• Esketamine reduces postoperative depression in breast cancer through TREK-1 channel inhibition and neurotransmitter modulation
  • Trial | This combined clinical and mechanistic study (n=54) shows esketamine alleviates postoperative depression in breast cancer patients by inhibiting TREK-1 potassium channels, supported by rat hippocampal transcriptomics and in vitro experiments.
• REM density predicts rapid antidepressant response to ketamine in individuals with treatment-resistant depression
  • Trial | This clinical study (n=104) found that treatment-resistant depression patients had higher first-period REM density (RD1) than healthy controls, which ketamine reduced. Higher baseline RD1 predicted better ketamine response (AUC=0.73), suggesting RD1’s potential as a therapeutic response biomarker.
• Acute subanesthetic ketamine-induced effects on the mismatch negativity and their relationship to early and sustained treatment response in major depressive disorder
  • Trial | This double-blind crossover trial (n=24) found that ketamine (35mg/70kg) reduced frontal mismatch negativity signals, with larger reductions predicting better antidepressant response in treatment-resistant depression patients, suggesting MMN could serve as a biomarker for ketamine treatment response.
• Esketamine has promising anti-inflammatory effects in orthopedic surgery and plays a protective role in postoperative cognitive function and pain management
  • Trial | This double-blind randomized controlled trial (n=200) found that pre-surgical esketamine (17.5mg/70kg) significantly reduced inflammatory markers, improved immune response, protected cognitive function, and reduced pain after orthopedic surgery compared to placebo, with minimal adverse effects.
• Ketamine effects on resting state functional brain connectivity in major depressive disorder patients: a hypothesis-driven analysis based on a network model of depression
  • Trial | This double-blind placebo-controlled crossover trial (n=16) examining ketamine’s (35mg/70kg) effects on brain connectivity in non-resistant depression found specific changes in depression-related neural circuits that corresponded with significant reductions in depression scores 24 hours post-administration.
• Intravenous esketamine in pediatric Rett syndrome: An open-label, early phase 1 pilot study
  • Trial | This pilot study (n=3) in girls with Rett syndrome found that weekly intravenous esketamine for 5 weeks was generally well-tolerated with minimal behavioral improvements and increased posterior dominant rhythm peak frequency, suggesting potential therapeutic benefits that warrant further investigation.
• Acute psilocybin and ketanserin effects on cerebral blood flow: 5-HT2AR neuromodulation in healthy humans | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | This single-blind crossover study (n=28), which we covered as a pre-print in September 2024, found that psilocybin reduced cerebral blood flow by about 12% and constricted internal carotid arteries by about 11%, while the 5-HT2A antagonist ketanserin had no significant effects, suggesting psilocybin’s acute brain effects are partly mediated through vascular changes.
• Long-Term Cognitive Outcomes of Esketamine Nasal Spray in Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Preliminary Report
  • Trial | This pilot study (n=8) found that six months of adjunct esketamine nasal spray treatment in treatment-resistant depression patients improved several cognitive domains without causing cognitive decline, with most improvements correlating with reduced depression severity.
• Oral ketamine for rapid reduction of suicidal ideation in major depressive disorder: A midazolam-controlled randomized clinical trial
  • Trial | This double-blind placebo-controlled trial (n=80) found that a single oral dose of ketamine (180mg/70kg) significantly reduced suicidal ideation and depression compared to midazolam, with effects lasting up to 7 days despite some mild side effects.
• Single-Dose Psilocybin Therapy for Alcohol Use Disorder: Pharmacokinetics, Feasibility, Safety, and Efficacy in an Open-Label Study | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | This open-label study (n=10) investigates the effects of single-dose psilocybin (25mg) therapy in adults with severe alcohol use disorder (AUD). It finds significant reductions in alcohol consumption, craving, and increases in self-efficacy over 12 weeks following treatment despite notable between-participant pharmacokinetic variations.
• Results From a Long-Term Observational Follow-Up Study of a Single Dose of Psilocybin for a Treatment-Resistant Episode of Major Depressive Disorder
  • Trial | This 52-week observational follow-up study (n=66) found that a single 25mg dose of COMP360 psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression suggested longer maintenance of antidepressant effects (median 92 days to depressive event) compared to 10mg (83 days) and 1mg (62 days) doses, with even more striking differences observed in the subset of patients who enrolled in the follow-up study.
• Body mass index is associated with the antidepressant effects of intravenous ketamine in patients with depression
  • Trial | This exploratory study (n=135) of patients with depression found that those with higher BMI (≥24 kg/m²) showed non-significant greater reductions in depressive symptoms after six ketamine infusions compared to those with lower BMI, though the differences in response rates (67.4% vs 51.1%) and remission rates (39.5% vs 31.5%) were not statistically significant.
• Acute Effects and Pharmacokinetics of LSD after Paroxetine or Placebo Pre-Administration in a Randomized, Double-Blind, Cross-Over Phase I Trial | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial | This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study in humans found that paroxetine (an SSRI) reduced negative effects of LSD (“bad drug effect,” “anxiety,” “nausea”) without altering its pleasant subjective effects. Paroxetine increased LSD blood concentrations by 40-50% through CYP2D6 inhibition, suggesting LSD dosage adjustments likely aren’t needed when combined with CYP2D6-inhibiting SSRIs, though this might differ for other SSRIs.
• Dissociable effects of LSD and MDMA on striato-cortical connectivity in healthy subjects | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial Synthesis | This fMRI study (taking data from two studies) compared the effects of LSD and MDMA on striatal connectivity, finding that while neither drug altered within-network striatal connectivity, MDMA reduced limbic striatum-amygdala connectivity while LSD increased connectivity between the associative striatum and multiple cortical regions.
• Esketamine Nasal Spray vs Quetiapine Extended-Release: Examining Work Productivity Loss and Related Costs in Patients With Treatment-Resistant Depression | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Trial Re-Analysis | This comparative study (n=321) demonstrated that esketamine nasal spray combined with antidepressants led to significantly greater improvements in work productivity and cost savings compared to quetiapine in treatment-resistant depression, with differences maintained through 32 weeks.
• Improvements in functioning and workplace productivity with esketamine nasal spray versus quetiapine extended release in patients with treatment resistant depression: Findings from a 32-week randomised, open-label, rater-blinded phase IIIb study
  • Trial Re-Analysis | This double-blind controlled trial (n=676) comparing esketamine nasal spray versus quetiapine XR in treatment-resistant depression found that esketamine-treated patients experienced significantly more weeks of functional remission and greater improvements in work productivity over 32 weeks.
• Patient preference effects in a randomized comparative effectiveness study of electroconvulsive therapy and ketamine for treatment resistant depression: An ELEKT-D trial secondary analysis
  • Trial Re-Analysis | This post hoc analysis (n=255) from the ELEKT-D trial found that ketamine was preferred over ECT by more participants, with ketamine preference associated with higher response rates regardless of treatment assignment, while preference-matching significantly improved response rates for ketamine but not ECT, though ECT-treated patients reported fewer adverse events when matched to their preference, suggesting complex, treatment-specific relationships between patient preferences and clinical outcomes.
• Protocol of an open-label safety and feasibility pilot study of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy for methamphetamine use disorder (the KAPPA trial)
  • Trial Protocol | This trial protocol of a pilot trial (n=20) details how they will study the safety and feasibility of ketamine-assisted cognitive behavioural therapy for methamphetamine use disorder, using weekly subcutaneous ketamine doses combined with therapy sessions over 4 weeks, with follow-up assessments continuing to 24 weeks.
• Psilocybin for Treatment-Resistant Depression in Autism: a Pilot Trial with Pre-Post Brain and Cognitive Measurement to Understand Mechanisms
  • Trial Protocol | This trial protocol outlines an open-label pilot study (n=20) examining psilocybin-assisted therapy (10mg then 25mg doses) for treatment-resistant depression in autistic adults, incorporating brain imaging to investigate mechanisms of action and assess safety, feasibility, and efficacy.
• Long-Term Mental Health and Wellbeing Outcomes Associated with Naturalistic Ayahuasca Consumption | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Observational | This observational study (n=66) found that naturalistic ayahuasca use led to sustained improvements in mental health and wellbeing for up to 12 months, with particularly significant symptom reductions among participants diagnosed with depression or anxiety disorders, while showing only short-term benefits for those without diagnoses and temporary decreases in substance use.
• Ketamine Treatment for Pediatric Refractory Obsessive: Five Open Label Cases
  • Case Report | This pilot trial (n=5) found that ketamine (35mg/70kg IV) was safe and well-tolerated in adolescents with treatment-resistant OCD, though symptom improvements were only temporary, suggesting further efficacy studies are warranted.
• Sequential ketamine infusion and electroconvulsive therapy in severe depression with psychotic symptoms and pseudo-dementia – A case report
  • Case Report | No information available yet
• The Potential Role of Hypnotic Suggestion in Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy for Depression
  • Case Report | This case report describes a 71-year-old woman with treatment-resistant depression who experienced significant improvement following an incidental suggestion during a ketamine infusion that rekindled her interest in travel, suggesting potential benefits of combining ketamine with hypnotherapy.
• Methamphetamine and Ecstasy-Induced Acute Reversible Cerebellar Neurotoxicity in a 3-Year-Old Child: A Case Report
  • Case Report | This case report describes acute cerebellar neurotoxicity from methamphetamine and ecstasy exposure in a 3-year-old girl – the youngest reported case – who presented with ataxia, dysarthria, and hypotonia that resolved during hospitalisation, highlighting the importance of drug screening in unexplained neurological symptoms in children.
• Psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy for Parkinson’s disease without depression: A case-report
  • Case Report | This case report describes a Parkinson’s disease patient (n=1) who received four psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy sessions over one year, showing improvements in psychological well-being and disease acceptance without changes in motor symptoms, suggesting potential benefits for psychological adjustment to PD that warrant further controlled research.
• Hallucinogen-Persisting Perception Disorder in a 16-Year-Old Adolescent
  • Case Report | A case report describes a 16-year-old with hallucinogen-persisting perception disorder (HPPD) following polysubstance use, who showed partial improvement with aripiprazole treatment during psychiatric hospitalisation.
• Gas necrosis and sepsis due to recreational ketamine use
  • Case Report | This case report describes a musician who developed severe arm infection with gas gangrene after injecting veterinary ketamine purchased online, highlighting the dangers of unregulated ketamine use while noting the need for careful consideration of its medical applications.
• Low-Dose Sublingual Ketamine for the Treatment of Raynaud’s Phenomenon
  • Case Report | This case report (n=1) describes an unexpected improvement in Raynaud’s phenomenon symptoms in a female patient receiving sublingual ketamine for treatment-resistant depression, suggesting ketamine’s vasodilatory properties might offer a novel treatment approach for this vascular condition.
• Case report: Significant lesion reduction and neural structural changes following ibogaine treatments for multiple sclerosis
  • Case Report | This case study (n=2) reports potential neuroimaging improvements and clinical benefits in multiple sclerosis patients after ibogaine treatment, showing lesion shrinkage and brain changes that suggest possible remyelination, reduced inflammation, and neuroplasticity effects.
• The effect of ketamine-assisted group therapy on treatment-resistant mental health conditions in firefighters: a prospective observational case series
  • Case Report | This observational case series found that a 12-week ketamine-assisted group therapy program led to significant and lasting reductions in PTSD and anxiety symptoms among firefighters, with participants highlighting the benefits of shared experience within their cohort.
• Case Report: Well-tolerated MDMA-assisted therapy in a 32-year old female patient with advanced alcohol-induced liver cirrhosis
  • Case Report | This case study (n=1) of a 32-year-old female with PTSD and alcohol-induced liver cirrhosis found that two doses of MDMA (50mg and 100mg) during therapy were well-tolerated without significant liver complications, suggesting potential safety for future research in similar patients despite previous concerns about MDMA’s liver toxicity.
• Prolonged adverse effects from repeated psilocybin use in an underground psychedelic therapy training program: a case report
  • Case Report | This case presentation reports on a psychologist who developed severe prolonged adverse effects including sleep impairment, anhedonia and suicidal ideation requiring hospitalization after repeated high-dose psilocybin exposure during psychedelic therapy training, highlighting tensions between underground training programs and conventional psychiatric care when trainers discouraged seeking medical treatment until symptoms were eventually resolved with electroconvulsive therapy.
• Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy for Generalized Anxiety Disorder: A Comprehensive Case Report with Integrated Neurophysiological Imaging Using Magnetoencephalography
  • Case Report | This pre-print case report of a male patient in his late 30s with generalised anxiety disorder shows that ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (KAP) led to functional connectivity increases in four of five brain networks measured by magnetoencephalography, alongside increased cortical beta activity, decreased theta oscillations, reduced anxiety and depression scores, and improved attention.
• Tripping into Treatment: Comparing Initial and Current Motivations for Psychedelic Use
  • Survey | This survey study (n=1,221) examining naturalistic psychedelic use found that users’ motivations shifted significantly over time, from initial recreational and exploratory reasons to later therapeutic and personal growth purposes, including mental health management and spiritual development.
• A qualitative analysis of the psychedelic mushroom come-up and come-down | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Survey | This qualitative analysis examining psilocybin experience reports from Erowid.org revealed that psychedelic experiences typically begin with negative stress-like states during the onset (‘come-up’) phase, followed by positive, recovery-like states during the descent (‘come-down’) phase.
• Funding Success of United States Federal Grant Applications Proposing to Study Therapeutic Applications of Psychedelics: A Survey Study
  • Survey | This survey study of psychedelic researchers (n=10) found that NIH funding rates for psychedelic research (16.7% overall) were below average NIH rates, with no funding before 2006, though recent rates (19-22%) have improved to match typical NIH levels, noting potential limitations due to small sample size and response bias.
• Social Worker Attitudes towards Psychedelics
  • Survey | This survey study of social workers (n=168) found generally positive attitudes toward psychedelic-assisted therapy, with previous psychedelic use, prior training, male gender, and non-Christian identity predicting favourable views while revealing low knowledge levels (19%) but high interest (75%) in delivering these treatments.
• The neverending trip: Associations between Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD) and non-visual perceptual disturbances
  • Survey | This survey study (n=254) found that people with Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD) were significantly more likely to experience other perceptual disturbances, particularly sensitivity to light and sound, suggesting possible shared mechanisms and risk factors that could inform screening for psychedelic therapy.
• Psychological Support Approaches in Psychedelic Therapy: Results From a Survey of Psychedelic Practitioners
  • Survey | This survey study (n=40) of psychedelic therapy practitioners found significant variation in approaches to psychological support during psychedelic sessions, with a slight overall preference for emotion/spirituality-focused versus biological approaches, particularly among those trained at MAPS or CIIS.
• Psychedelics and chronic pain: self-reported outcomes on changed substance use patterns and health following naturalistic psychedelic use
  • Survey | This cross-sectional survey (n=466) of adults using psychedelics for chronic pain found that 86.3% reported reducing or stopping other substances (particularly alcohol and prescription opioids), with psilocybin rated as most effective for both physical and mental health symptoms.
• Practitioner perspectives on meditation-based preparation for psychedelic experiences
  • Survey | This survey (n=123) of experienced meditation and psychedelic practitioners found that Loving-Kindness Meditation was considered the most beneficial preparatory practice, with respondents recommending three weeks of 30-minute daily sessions, while the relationship between meditation tradition adherence and perceived benefits varied based on experience levels.
• On Minimizing Risk and Harm in the Use of Psychedelics | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Survey | This survey study (n=30) of psychedelic researchers identified key research gaps in psychedelic safety, including the need to better understand and predict potential harms, while recommending practical improvements such as enhanced support services and dedicating 1% of psychedelic investments to safety measures.
• Shame, Guilt and Psychedelic Experience: Results from a Prospective, Longitudinal Survey of Real-World Psilocybin Use | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Survey | This prospective, longitudinal study (n=679) examined the effects of psilocybin use on emotional experiences, particularly feelings of shame and guilt. The study found that while most participants had positive experiences with psilocybin, acute feelings of shame or guilt were common (68%), and the ability to work through these feelings positively correlated with well-being in the weeks following use.
• Social Workers’ Attitudes and Beliefs about MDMA-Assisted Therapy for Adolescents with PTSD
  • Survey | This study (n=222) found that social workers viewed SSRI-assisted therapy more favourably than MDMA-assisted therapy for adolescent PTSD, with higher psychedelic knowledge correlating with lower stigma and perceived risk of MDMA – suggesting that education could be key to improving acceptance of MDMA-assisted therapy.
• Acceptance of psilocybin-assisted therapy in German-speaking countries
  • Survey | This survey study (n=1,456) investigating attitudes towards psilocybin-assisted therapy among mental health experts, patients and the general public in Germany found that greater knowledge and personal experience with psychedelics predicted more positive attitudes, while balanced information about both benefits and risks led to higher acceptance.
• Setting the Stage for the Inner Journey: Unraveling the Interplay of Contextual Factors and the Intensity of Psychedelic-Induced Ego Dissolution
  • Survey | This cross-sectional study (n=862) found that people using psychedelics for spiritual or healing purposes reported stronger ego-dissolution experiences than those using out of curiosity, while the physical environment and social setting had little impact on these experiences.
• Sex Differences in Religious Beliefs Before and After an Entity Encounter During an Ayahuasca Experience
  • Survey | This survey study (n=415) found that while men were more likely to be atheists before encountering entities during ayahuasca experiences, both men and women reported becoming more religious afterwards, with men showing a more dramatic shift in their beliefs.
• Knowledge and Opinions About the Use of Psychedelics Among Psychiatrists in Korea: Preliminary Results
  • Survey | This Korean survey of psychiatrists (n=101) reveals limited knowledge about psychedelics (average 2.1/5 correct answers) despite most supporting their medical authorization (63.3%) and recognizing their therapeutic potential, highlighting the need for improved professional education.
• Setting the Stage for the Inner Journey: Unraveling the Interplay of Contextual Factors and the Intensity of Psychedelic-Induced Ego Dissolution
  • Survey | This cross-sectional survey (n=862) found that psychedelic users’ motivations (particularly spiritual or self-healing intentions) significantly influenced ego dissolution intensity, while physical and social settings showed no robust associations.
• Characteristics of patients with major depressive disorder eligible for and prescribed esketamine, treatment outcomes and physician experiences: a physician and patient survey in the United States
  • Survey | This real-world survey study (n=914) examining treatment-resistant depression and major depression with suicidal ideation in the US found substantial impact on daily functioning, with physicians underestimating disease severity, while a subgroup receiving esketamine (n=94) reported improvements in symptoms and daily activities.
• The Acceptability of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Amongst Mental Health Consumers: Utilising the Theory of Planned Behaviour
  • Survey | This survey study (n=254) examining attitudes towards psychedelic-assisted therapy in Australia found that 75% of mental health consumers expressed interest in accessing these treatments, with intentions driven by treatment acceptability and dissatisfaction with conventional therapy rather than prior psychedelic use.
• A cohort-based assessment of drug use trends during the COVID-19 pandemic: relationship with mood and sociodemographic factors in Brazil
  • Survey | This Brazilian survey demonstrates that psychedelics use (hallucinogens) decreased across three pandemic timepoints alongside reductions in anxiety, depression and stress symptoms, with certain demographic factors associated with higher substance use patterns.
• Psychedelic medicine in psychiatry residency training: a survey of psychiatric residency program directors
  • Survey | A survey of 61 US psychiatry residency training directors found that while most programs (64%) support increased psychedelic medicine education and nearly all (94%) expressed interest in implementing standardised curricula, many identified challenges, including insufficient educational materials (54%) and limited faculty expertise (46%).
• Exploring factors associated with the intensity of a mystical experience following naturalistic psychedelic use: A retrospective survey
  • Survey | This retrospective analysis (n=1657) found that mystical experience intensity during psychedelic use was most strongly predicted by spiritual/therapeutic intentions, substance type (with ayahuasca and LSD showing stronger effects than psilocybin), higher dosages, number of previous sessions, time since experience, and was negatively impacted by concurrent alcohol use.
• Exploring Gender-Themed Lysergic Acid Diethylamide Experiences: A Subreddit Analysis
  • Online Analysis | This Reddit-based observational study (n=94) examining gender-themed LSD experiences found that most non-cisgender users reported enhanced gender identity self-acceptance (80%), while some cisgender users (29.2%) reported persistent non-cisgender identity explorations following use.
• Is it now time to prepare psychiatry for a psychedelic future?: commentary, Breen et al
  • Commentary | This commentary critiques efforts to fast-track psychedelic drugs (ketamine, MDMA, others) without adequate safety data, proper clinical trials, and standard drug approval protocols, emphasizing that novel psychiatric treatments should follow established safety validation processes.
• Psychedelics for Moral Bioenhancement in Healthy Individuals—A Violation of the Non-Maleficence Principle?
  • Commentary | This opinion piece argues against using psychedelics for moral enhancement, citing concerns about their hallucinogenic effects, psychosis risks, and lack of clear evidence for moral benefits, concluding that such use would be ethically problematic without stronger evidence of benefit or development of non-hallucinogenic alternatives.
• KET or ECT for treatment-resistant depression?
  • Commentary | This commentary discusses how both ketamine and ECT are highly effective treatments for treatment-resistant depression, arguing that treatment choices should be guided by clinical response markers and patient preferences, while highlighting the need for studies examining ECT’s effectiveness in ketamine non-responders.
• The Trouble With Psychedelic Cacti: Conflicting Meanings of San Pedro and Peyote
  • Commentary | This autoethnographic study examines tensions surrounding mescaline-containing cacti (San Pedro and Peyote) through the author’s personal experiences, exploring intersections between Indigenous traditions, scientific research, commercialisation, and conservation while analysing how different stakeholders navigate medicinal use and legal restrictions.
• Comment on “Intravenous ketamine successfully treats treatment-resistant catatonia in schizophrenia: A case report”
  • Commentary | No information available yet (and response here)
• Expanded access to psychedelic treatments: comparing American and Canadian policies
  • Commentary | This commentary suggests that the FDA should adopt elements of Canada’s more accessible model for psychedelic therapy access while awaiting full drug approvals, noting that Canada has granted over 200 patients access to psilocybin or MDMA compared to only 50 MDMA patients in the US, despite having a much smaller population.
• Transdiagnostic use of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine-assisted therapy to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder
  • Commentary | This commentary proposes how MDMA-assisted therapy might enhance exposure therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder through its fear extinction and empathogenic properties, while noting the need to consider safety aspects in future research.
• Public priorities in psychedelics research
  • Commentary | This commentary summarizes public interests and concerns about psychedelic research gathered from UK lectures during 2021-2024, highlighting unexplored areas (like effects in autism, aging, and menstrual cycles) and concerns about commercialisation while emphasising the need for broader dialogue between scientists and the public.
• Shrinking the know-do gap in psychedelic-assisted therapy
  • Commentary | This commentary proposes using implementation science approaches to responsibly accelerate the translation of psychedelic-assisted therapy research into clinical practice, while maintaining scientific rigour and safety standards.
• Classical psychedelics in therapy: Essential psychotherapy or minimal support?
  • Perspective | No information available yet
• Ketamine vs Electroconvulsive Therapy in the Management of Treatment-Resistant Depression: Do We Need More Data?
  • Perspective | No information available yet (see this correction)
• Sleep-administered ketamine/psychedelics: A streamlined strategy to address two challenges in research on ketamine and psychedelics
  • Perspective | No information available yet
• What is Psychological Support in the Context of Psychedelic Clinical Trials?
  • Perspective | This perspective piece argues for clearer definitions and boundaries between psychological support and psychotherapy in psychedelic research trials, suggesting that using the microskills framework could help standardize protocols and ensure interventions remain within appropriate regulatory and clinical scope.
• Strengthening Safeguards for Psychiatric Uses of Ketamine
  • Perspective | No information available yet
• Psychedelics and Pro-Social Behaviors: A Perspective on Autism Spectrum Disorders
  • Perspective | This viewpoint article explores how psychedelics including LSD, psilocybin, and MDMA might affect social behaviours in autism spectrum disorders (ASD), examining potential therapeutic mechanisms for improving social interaction and communication deficits.
• Drug development in psychiatry: 50 years of failure and how to resuscitate it
  • Perspective | This perspective from David Nutt examines why psychiatric drug development has largely stagnated since the 1970s despite major advances in other medical fields and substantial research investment, with most current psychiatric medications still based on serendipitous discoveries from the 1950s rather than targeted disease mechanisms.
• Reimagining Psychedelic Trials: Theorising a pragmatic approach to complex intervention development
  • Perspective | This pre-print position paper advocates for treating psychedelic-assisted therapy as a complex intervention rather than a simple pharmaceutical treatment, proposing the use of pragmatic trial designs and mixed research methods to better understand its real-world effectiveness and integration into healthcare systems.
• Shrinking the know–do gap in psychedelic-assisted therapy
  • Perspective | This perspective advocates for using implementation science to reduce the 17-year research-to-practice gap for psychedelic-assisted therapy, suggesting strategies like SMART (sequential multiple assignment randomized trial) designs and hybrid studies to accelerate access whilst maintaining scientific rigour and safety standards.
• Psychedelics and the Autonomic Nervous System: A Perspective on Their Interplay and Therapeutic Potential
  • Perspective | This viewpoint article proposes the need for a research framework examining the underexplored relationship between psychedelics and the autonomic nervous system, particularly how psychedelic compounds modulate sympathetic and parasympathetic functions, potentially influencing both cardiovascular health and therapeutic outcomes in psychiatric disorders.
• Psychedelic Ego Dissolution: A Philosophical and Qualitative Analysis
  • Perspective | This philosophical analysis of 411 5-MeO-DMT trip reports challenges claims of complete ego dissolution/selflessness during psychedelic experiences, suggesting instead that these states maintain a minimal form of self-consciousness despite profound alterations in self-experience.
• Exploring End-of-Life Experiences and Consciousness through the Lens of Psychedelics
  • Perspective | This perspective explores how psychedelic experiences may provide valuable insights into the dying process, potentially reducing existential distress and improving quality of life for terminal patients through their applications in palliative care, therapy and spiritual exploration.
• Psychedelics assisting therapy, or therapy assisting psychedelics? The importance of psychotherapy in psychedelic-assisted therapy
  • Perspective | This perspective argues that psychotherapy is an essential component of psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT), emphasising its synergistic role in enhancing psychological and relational healing, while advocating for rigorous research to determine the most effective therapeutic approaches and dosing within PAT.
• Sex impacts on mismatch negativity under low-dose ketamine
  • Letter to the Editor | This letter to the editor reports a re-analysis of previously published ketamine research data to examine potential sex-based differences in ketamine’s effects, following recent evidence suggesting sex-specific responses to ketamine and other NMDA antagonists.
• The Need for Guidance on Ketamine/Esketamine Use in Real-World Clinical Settings
  • Letter to the Editor | This letter responds to a study on ketamine/esketamine for bipolar depression, highlighting additional research supporting its safety and efficacy while noting the importance of real-world evidence for developing clinical guidelines.
• Suicide after psychedelic-assisted treatment in context
  • Letter to the Editor | No information available yet.
• Psychedelic Assisted Psychotherapy for Treatment Resistant Disorders Mechanisms Evidence and Future Directions
  • Editorial | The editorial introduces psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy’s potential for treating various treatment-resistant mental health conditions, noting its proposed mechanisms of action through enhanced emotional insight and neuroplasticity.
• Editorial for psychedelic and psychedelic and psychedelic-like states
  • Editorial | This editorial highlights the resurgence of psychedelic research in psychiatry, discussing current theories about their mechanisms of action while cautioning against ‘psychedelic exceptionalism’ and suggesting that researchers should consider broader literature on altered states of consciousness to better understand psychedelic effects.
• From the Editor-in-Chief’s Desk: Psychedelic Therapeutics-Something Old and Something New
  • Editorial | This editorial highlights the rapidly advancing field of psychedelic therapeutics research, addressing the emerging interest in extending these studies to youth with refractory psychiatric disorders while emphasizing the need for ethical guidelines, comprehensive family system understanding, and enhanced psychosocial perspectives in clinical trials.
• Bias and Balance in Psychedelic Academia- A Tricky Business
  • Editorial | This editorial discusses the rapid growth of psychedelic research since 2006 and emphasizes the complex challenge of maintaining scientific balance and acknowledging bias in psychedelic academia, particularly highlighting concerns about the conflation of different psychedelic compounds and the need for careful scientific communication.
• Psychedelic-assisted Therapy as a Promising Treatment for Irritable Bowel Syndrome
  • Editorial | This editorial proposes that psychedelic-assisted therapy, particularly with psilocybin, may benefit irritable bowel syndrome patients through psychological, neurological, and gut-brain interaction mechanisms, warranting further research into this novel treatment approach.
• Evidence-Based Therapy Models in a New Age of Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy
  • Editorial | This editorial outlines how psychedelics evolved from ancient religious use to modern psychiatric research, highlighting their trajectory from 1940s psychiatric studies through countercultural movements of the 1960s, subsequent criminalization, and eventual re-emergence in contemporary therapeutic research.
• Assessment and Management of Patients at Risk for Suicide: Synopsis of the 2024 U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and U.S. Department of Defense Clinical Practice Guidelines
  • Clinical Practice Guideline | This clinical practice guideline (2024 update) from VA/DOD recommends several interventions for suicide prevention, including ketamine infusion for major depressive disorder, while noting insufficient evidence for universal suicide risk screening programs.
• Efficacy and safety of ketamine and esketamine in reducing the incidence of postpartum depression: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis
  • Meta-Analysis | This systematic review and meta-analysis (s=21, n=4,389) found that both ketamine and esketamine reduced short-term postpartum depression incidence, while only esketamine was effective for long-term prevention, with both medications showing similar efficacy at low and high doses but carrying temporary side effects like dizziness and hallucinations.
• Comparative Efficacy and Safety of Ketamine Versus Electroconvulsive Therapy in Major Depressive Disorder: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials
  • Meta-Analysis | This meta-analysis (s=6, n=643) shows ketamine and ECT have similar antidepressant efficacy in major depressive disorder, with ketamine showing better memory outcomes but more dissociative effects, though larger trials are needed to confirm these findings.
• Among Psychedelics, Only Psilocybin Has Demonstrated Benefit to Treat Depression
  • Meta-Analysis | This network meta-analysis (s=15, n=811) found that only high-dose psilocybin showed modest superiority over placebo for depression treatment, performing slightly better than escitalopram in indirect comparisons.
• Esketamine reduces the risk of postpartum depression in women undergoing cesarean section: A systematic review and meta-analysis
  • Meta-Analysis | This meta-analysis (s=17) found that perioperative esketamine administration significantly reduced postpartum depression rates and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale scores in women undergoing cesarean sections, with a favourable safety profile.
• The intensity of the psychedelic experience is reliably associated with clinical improvements: A systematic review and meta-analysis
  • Meta-Analysis | This meta-analysis found a significant positive correlation between mystical experience intensity and clinical improvement in psychedelic-assisted therapies (r = .33, p < .0001), with notably stronger associations for mood disorders compared to addictions, and in protocol-based clinical settings rather than naturalistic contexts.
• Efficacy of esketamine nasal spray for treatment-resistant depression: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled studies
  • Meta-Analysis | This meta-analysis (s=5) found that esketamine nasal spray significantly improved treatment-resistant depression symptoms and response rates compared to control treatments, though it increased side effects like dizziness and nausea.
• Cardiovascular effects and safety of classic psychedelics
  • Review | This review examines the cardiovascular safety profile of psychedelic drugs, highlighting their effects on cardiac electrophysiology, structure, and vasculature, while identifying critical knowledge gaps regarding their use in patients with heart disease, drug interactions, and long-term exposure.
• Serotonergic psychedelics as potential therapeutics for post-COVID-19 syndrome (or Long COVID): A comprehensive review
  • Review | This review proposes serotonergic psychedelics as potential therapeutic agents for Long COVID/post-COVID-19 syndrome, examining their mechanisms of action through inflammation reduction, neuroplasticity enhancement, and gastrointestinal function improvement, while emphasizing the need for further research to validate safety and efficacy.
• Exploring Psychedelics for Unmet Needs in Women’s Reproductive Health
  • Review | This narrative mini-review exploring psychedelics in women’s reproductive health highlights both promising therapeutic applications and safety concerns, emphasising significant knowledge gaps regarding psychedelic use during key reproductive stages whilst acknowledging traditional indigenous uses and the need for female-specific research and harm reduction strategies.
• Clinical trials since 2020 of rapid anti-suicidal ideation effects of ketamine and its enantiomers: a systematic review
  • Review | This systematic review (s=16) examining ketamine and its enantiomers for suicidal ideation found that multiple intravenous doses showed the most consistent anti-suicidal effects lasting days to weeks, while intranasal administration and single doses showed more variable results, with R-ketamine showing promise but requiring further research.
• Towards an expanded neurocognitive account of ketamine’s rapid antidepressant effects
  • Review | This review examines how ketamine may achieve its rapid antidepressant effects through modulating brain systems involved in reward processing, bodily awareness, and self-related thinking, suggesting these interconnected mechanisms contribute to its therapeutic benefits.
• Psychedelics in the Treatment of Substance Use Disorders and Addictive Behaviors: A Scoping Review
  • Review | This literature review (s=132) found the strongest evidence for LSD and ketamine in treating alcohol use disorder, with emerging but less robust evidence for other psychedelics in treating various substance use disorders and behavioural addictions, highlighting the need for more systematic research into mechanisms and comparative efficacy.
• Towards an expanded neurocognitive account of ketamine’s rapid antidepressant effects
  • Review | This review explores ketamine’s antidepressant effects through its modulation of brain systems involved in reward processing, interoception and self-related cognition, suggesting its therapeutic action works through multiple interconnected mechanisms.
• Trends in research on novel antidepressant treatments
  • Review | This review examines current research trends in novel antidepressant development (including ketamine and psilocybin), focusing on rapid-acting treatments for treatment-resistant depression and highlighting the importance of animal models in understanding new compounds’ mechanisms of action and therapeutic potential.
• Safety in treatment: Classical pharmacotherapeutics and new avenues for addressing maternal depression and anxiety during pregnancy
  • Review | This review examines antidepressant safety during pregnancy, suggesting that while limited safety data exists due to pregnant individuals’ exclusion from clinical trials, SSRIs and SNRIs show minimal adverse effects on fetal development, and untreated maternal depression may pose greater risks than medication use. The review also discusses emerging treatments like ketamine that warrant further investigation for use during pregnancy.
• Anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating disorder : current situation and future prospects
  • Review | This review (in French) examines how eating disorders affect both psychological and physical health, highlighting how recent advances in diagnosis and understanding of causes have led to new treatment approaches including neuromodulation, virtual reality and psychedelics.
• MDMA-Assisted Therapy for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: Regulatory Challenges and a Path Forward
  • Review | This review examines the status of MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD (affecting 6.8% of the population), discussing its promising Phase III trial results showing 70% remission rates, while explaining the 2024 FDA rejection due to concerns about trial design and potential misconduct, and highlighting the need for addressing regulatory challenges in future research.
• Emerging strategies and clinical recommendations for the management of novel depression subtypes
  • Review | This review examines emerging depression subtypes and their treatments, discussing how traditional antidepressants, ketamine, and other interventions can be tailored to address specific manifestations of depression in different populations and contexts.
• Amphetamine-type stimulants and phenethylamines in the landscape of new psychoactive substances
  • Review | This review discusses the forensic and analytical challenges in detecting amphetamine-type stimulants and phenethylamines in biological samples, highlighting their complex pharmacology, rapid metabolism, and the emergence of New Psychoactive Substances designed to evade legal control.
• Anaesthetic implications of psilocybin and lysergic acid diethylamide: what is old is now new: A narrative review on psychedelics and anaesthesia
  • Review | This review outlines key anaesthetic considerations for patients using psychedelics (psilocybin, LSD, and mescaline), emphasizing potential drug interactions, autonomic effects, and the importance of timing elective surgery to avoid acute intoxication.
• A Review of the Food and Drug Administration Pipeline and Proposed California Legislation on Medicinal Psychedelics
  • Review | This review examines eight late-phase medicinal psychedelic studies in the FDA approval pipeline, including the recent rejection of MDMA for PTSD, while discussing California’s parallel legislative proposals to legalise psychedelics for adult use and arguing that the FDA remains the appropriate regulatory authority despite the higher costs of this pathway.
• Quantitative natural language processing markers of psychoactive drug effects: A pre-registered systematic review
  • Review | This systematic review examining natural language processing studies of drug effects on speech and text found that different substances distinctly affect language patterns – with stimulants increasing verbosity, LSD reducing vocabulary, MDMA increasing emotional language, and psilocybin increasing positive sentiment – though methodological standardisation is needed for future research.
• A Review of the Federal Drug Administration Pipeline and Proposed California Legislation on Medicinal Psychedelics
  • Review | This review examines eight late-phase medicinal psychedelic studies in the FDA approval pipeline, analysing the recent rejection of MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD while contrasting this regulatory approach with California’s legislative efforts to legalise adult psychedelic use, ultimately arguing that the FDA’s thorough safety evaluation process remains more appropriate than faster but less rigorous legislative pathways.
• Psychedelic therapy – refining the claim of a paradigm shift
  • Review | This article challenges the notion of a “Psychedelic Renaissance” as a true paradigm shift in psychiatry, arguing that while psychedelics offer novel therapeutic aspects, they represent an evolution of existing frameworks rather than a revolution. The authors emphasise integrating these compounds within the bio-psycho-social model, acknowledging their role as “nonspecific amplifiers” of psychological processes whilst cautioning against “psychedelic exceptionalism” that oversells their revolutionary potential.
• Safety and efficacy of methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted psychotherapy in post-traumatic stress disorder: An overview of systematic reviews and meta-analyses
  • Review | This systematic review (s=14) of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder found four high-quality reviews suggesting substantial benefits in symptom improvement and remission rates compared to psychotherapy alone, though with low to very low certainty evidence for efficacy and moderate to very low quality evidence for safety outcomes due to methodological limitations.
• Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) changes in rodent models of schizophrenia induced by ketamine: a systematic review
  • Review | This systematic review (s=17) of ketamine-induced schizophrenia models in rodents found inconsistent effects on brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), with sub-chronic and chronic ketamine generally decreasing BDNF levels in rats and mice while acute administration increased BDNF, suggesting that treatment duration, sex and species significantly influence outcomes and highlighting the lack of standardization in ketamine-based schizophrenia models.
• Psychedelics and Suicide-Related Outcomes: A Systematic Review
  • Review | This systematic review of psychedelic therapies’ effects on suicide-related outcomes found promising but mixed results, with RCTs showing significant reductions in suicidal ideation following psilocybin and MDMA-assisted therapy (effect sizes d=0.52-1.25), while non-randomized studies showed varied effects depending on substance (psilocybin and MDMA generally positive, LSD associated with increased suicidality), underscoring the need for more research specifically designed to evaluate these outcomes.
• The Contribution of Psychotherapy in Potential Therapeutic Effects of Psychedelics for Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder
  • Review | This review examines the emerging potential of both classical and non-classical psychedelic treatments for opioid use disorder (OUD), specifically investigating the role and necessity of concurrent psychotherapy in these treatment approaches, given the limitations of current FDA-approved medications which, despite effectiveness, face high discontinuation and relapse rates.
• Exploring Pleasure and Risks: The Interplay Between Recreational Substances and Sexual Health
  • Review | This review examines the complex relationship between recreational drugs and sexual pleasure, noting that while many substances are used as aphrodisiacs, particularly among younger populations, their effects on sexual experience are multifaceted—potentially enhancing desire while also risking negative impacts on sexual function and overall well-being, emphasizing the importance of understanding both the positive and negative dimensions of this relationship.
• Psilocybin as a Disease-Modifying Drug: A Salutogenic Approach in Psychiatry.
  • Review | This review of psilocybin research since 1969 found strong evidence from RCTs for its efficacy in treating depression (effect sizes 0.67-2.6), alcohol use disorders, and cancer-related anxiety, suggesting it could be psychiatry’s first disease-modifying treatment rather than just symptom management.
• Medical Marijuana and Psychedelics for Chronic Pain
  • Review | This review discusses the complex and multifactorial nature of chronic pain, highlighting its persistence beyond tissue healing, its economic burden, and the challenges in treatment due to central sensitization, maladaptive neuroplasticity, and psychological and social factors.
• Psilocybin Microdosing for Anxiety Relief in Young Adults: A Comparative Review of Emerging Evidence
  • Review | This systematic review examined the effects of psilocybin microdosing for anxiety in young adults (18-35) across studies from 2014-2024, finding promising evidence for anxiety reduction, improved mood, enhanced emotional resilience, and cognitive benefits through mechanisms involving serotonin receptor modulation and neural plasticity, while acknowledging methodological limitations and the need for standardised protocols and long-term safety data.
• Ketamine in the Treatment of Depression
  • Review | This review summarises evidence from the PubMed literature indicating that ketamine produces rapid antidepressant effects in treatment-resistant depression, heralding a promising new approach for managing major depressive disorder whilst underscoring the need for careful evaluation of its benefits and risks.
• Anesthetics as Treatments for Depression: Clinical Insights and Underlying Mechanisms
  • Review | This review examines the antidepressant potential of various anesthetic agents beyond ketamine, including nitrous oxide, propofol, and xenon, discussing their neurophysiological mechanisms and relevance to depression treatment.
• Ketamine-associated upper urinary tract dysfunction: What we know from current literature
  • Review | This review (s=11) examined the impacts of ketamine abuse on upper urinary tract dysfunction, finding it can cause various urological problems including bladder dysfunction and inflammation, while highlighting the need for more research to understand mechanisms and improve treatments.
• Demystifying the Antidepressant Mechanism of Action of Stinels, a Novel Class of Neuroplastogens: Positive Allosteric Modulators of the NMDA Receptor
  • Review | This review explores stinels (rapastinel, apimostinel, zelquistinel) as novel antidepressant compounds that, unlike ketamine, act as positive allosteric modulators of NMDAR, potentially offering similar therapeutic benefits with fewer side effects.
• The Therapeutic Potential of Psychedelics in Treating Substance Use Disorders: A Review of Clinical Trials
  • Review | This systematic review (s=16) of clinical trials from 2013-2023 found that psychedelic-assisted therapy, particularly with psilocybin and ayahuasca, shows promise in treating substance use disorders by reducing cravings and promoting abstinence, though more standardized, large-scale research is needed.
• Emerging Medications for Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Review with Perspective on Mechanisms and Challenges
  • Review | This systematic review of clinical trials registries found glutamate modulators and psychedelics (particularly psilocybin) are the most researched novel treatments for treatment-resistant depression, with 50 trials for TRD, 20 for anhedonia, and 25 for suicide being conducted between 2020-2023.
• Psychedelic-Induced Neural Plasticity: A Comprehensive Review and a Discussion of Clinical Implications
  • Review | This systematic review (s=70) of preclinical and clinical studies up to June 2024 confirmed psychedelics’ neuroplasticity-promoting properties, but highlighted uncertainty about whether these benefits can be separated from their psychedelic effects and whether increased neural plasticity is universally beneficial.
• Further education in psychedelic-assisted therapy – experiences from Switzerland
  • Review | This article describes how Switzerland has allowed limited medical use of MDMA, psilocybin, and LSD since 2014, highlighting the Swiss Medical Association for Psychedelic Therapy’s comprehensive three-year training programme for physicians and psychologists that addresses theoretical knowledge and practical skills, whilst noting that demand for such training far exceeds supply, creating an urgent need for expanded educational opportunities and certification standards as psychedelic-assisted therapy becomes more mainstream.
• A review of psychedelics trials completed in depression, informed by European regulatory perspectives | Blossom Review 🔗
  • Review | This systematic review found that eight completed controlled clinical trials of psychedelics (psilocybin, LSD, ayahuasca, and DMT) for depression have been conducted as of February 2024, analyzing methodological approaches in light of draft European Medicines Agency guidelines that will specifically address psychedelic research, highlighting challenges including unblinding, appropriate comparators, treatment frameworks, and distinguishing adverse events from expected psychedelic effects.
• Visual Hallucinations in Serotonergic Psychedelics and Lewy Body Diseases
  • Review | This narrative review explores the surprising similarities between visual hallucinations in Lewy body diseases and those induced by serotonergic psychedelics like psilocybin and mescaline, finding overlapping phenomenology (including illusory motion and entity encounters) and shared neural signatures (hyperactive associative cortex paired with hypoactive sensory cortex), with both types demonstrating serotonin 2A receptor involvement, reduced visual evoked responses, and shifts toward visual excitation, suggesting common mechanisms that could inform therapeutic approaches for treating hallucinations in neurological disorders.
• Efficacy of psilocybin for treating symptoms of depression: systematic review and meta-analysis
  • Review Correction | This correction addressed calculation errors of standardised mean differences and duplicate data inclusion in a psilocybin for depression meta-analysis, though the main conclusions remained unchanged – this review isn’t in the database.
• Low (micro)doses of 2,5-dimethoxy-4-propylamphetamine (DOPR) increase effortful motivation in low-performing mice
  • In Mice | This mouse study (n=80) shows that DOPR, a psychedelic compound, improved motivation at very low doses (0.0106mg/kg) in under-performing mice without causing hallucinogenic effects, which only occurred at higher doses (≥0.1mg/kg).
• Repeated intermittent administration of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine mitigates demyelination in the brain from cuprizone-treated mice
  • In Mice | This mouse study demonstrated that intermittent MDMA treatment (10mg/kg) reduced brain demyelination in cuprizone-treated mice, with effects potentially mediated through alterations in gut microbiota and metabolites, suggesting a gut-brain axis mechanism.
• Classification of psychedelics and psychoactive drugs based on brain-wide imaging of cellular c-Fos expression
  • In Mice | This mouse study demonstrates that using light sheet fluorescence microscopy and machine learning can distinguish between different psychedelics (psilocybin, ketamine, DMT, MDMA) and other drugs with 67% overall accuracy, notably achieving over 95% accuracy when comparing psilocybin against individual compounds.
• Toxicological evaluation, postmortem case descriptions, and pharmacological activity of N,N-dimethylpentylone and related analogs
  • In Mice | This forensic study (n=125) analysed blood concentrations and pharmacological effects of N,N-dimethylpentylone (DMP) and related compounds, finding DMP to be a potent dopamine transporter inhibitor and stimulant associated with fatalities, with blood concentrations ranging from 3.3-4600 ng/mL in postmortem cases.
• (2R, 6R)-hydroxynorketamine alleviates postictal depression induced by pilocarpine through modulating LRP4 expression in hippocampal astrocytes
  • In Mice | This mouse study revealed that a ketamine metabolite ((2R, 6R)-HNK) effectively treated post-seizure depression by modulating LRP4 protein expression in hippocampal astrocytes, providing a potential new therapeutic approach for treating depression following epileptic seizures.
• Involvement of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor GluN2C/GluN2D subunits in social behavior impairments in mice exposed to social defeat stress as juveniles
  • In Mice | This mouse study shows that ketamine’s ability to improve stress-induced social behaviour problems is linked to its effects on specific NMDA receptor subtypes (GluN2C/GluN2D), suggesting these receptors could be therapeutic targets for treating stress-related psychiatric disorders in adolescents.
• Psilocin, A Psychedelic Drug, Exerts Anticonvulsant Effects Against PTZ- and MES-Induced Seizures in Mice via 5-HT1A and CB1 Receptors: Involvement of Nitrergic, Opioidergic, and Kynurenine Pathways
  • In Mice | This mouse study found that psilocin (3mg/kg) showed anticonvulsant effects against experimentally-induced seizures, working through multiple pathways including kynurenine, opioid, serotonin, and nitric oxide systems, suggesting potential therapeutic applications in epilepsy.
• Discovery of a Novel Orally Active Ketamine Derivative with Dual Analgesic and Antidepressant Activities, Lacking Psychomimetic Effects
  • In Mice | This study synthesized and evaluated 16 novel ketamine derivatives, with compound k1 showing comparable analgesic and antidepressant effects to ketamine but with minimal psychomimetic effects, suggesting potential therapeutic value supported by molecular docking studies.
• Ibogalogs decrease neuropathic pain in mice through a mechanism involving crosstalk between 5-HT2A and mGlu2 receptors
  • In Mice | This mouse study investigated several ibogaine-derived compounds (ibogalogs) for treating oxaliplatin-induced neuropathic pain, demonstrating that these compounds provide pain relief through a novel mechanism involving both serotonin (5-HT2A) and glutamate (mGlu2) receptors working together.
• Esketamine mitigates endotoxin-induced hippocampal injury by regulating calcium transient and synaptic plasticity via the NF-α1/CREB pathway
  • In Mice | This mouse study showed that esketamine (10mg/kg) protected against sepsis-induced brain damage and cognitive problems by reducing inflammation and improving brain cell communication through a specific molecular pathway (NF-α1/CREB).
• Behavioral and Electrophysiological Effects of Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD) In a Mouse Model of Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD)
  • In Mice | This mouse study demonstrated that a single dose of LSD (150mcg/kg) reduced alcohol consumption and improved motor function in alcohol-dependent mice while partially restoring dopamine signalling disruptions in the brain’s reward system.
• Behavioral Analyses of Antidepressant-like Effect of Serotonergic Psychedelics in Mice
  • In Mice | This mouse study found that several psychedelics (psilocin, DOI, TCB-2) reduced depression-like behaviours through the 5-HT2A receptor, with psilocin’s effects lasting up to three weeks. While psilocin also reduced anxiety-like behaviours, this effect appeared to work through a different mechanism.
• Identification of Key Genes in Esketamine’s Therapeutic Effects on Perioperative Neurocognitive Disorders via Transcriptome Sequencing
  • In Mice | This mouse study suggests that esketamine may help mitigate perioperative neurocognitive disorders by improving cognitive function and modulating key genes involved in cholesterol biosynthesis, RNA processing, and synaptic plasticity.
• Ketamine does not rescue plaque load or gap detection in the 5XFAD mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease
  • In Mice | This mouse study using the 5XFAD Alzheimer’s model found that neither acute nor chronic ketamine treatment affected amyloid plaque formation or early auditory processing deficits, though it confirmed that these auditory deficits correlate with amyloid accumulation in specific brain regions.
• The dopaminergic effects of esketamine are mediated by a dual mechanism involving glutamate and opioid receptors
  • In Mice | This mouse study shows that esketamine increases extracellular dopamine levels by impairing dopamine clearance while reducing reward-evoked dopamine release, highlighting its complex, state-dependent interactions with glutamatergic and opioid systems.
• Ketamine Alters Specific Gene Expression Profiles by Transcriptome-Wide Responses in a Ketamine-Induced Schizophrenia-Like Mouse Model
  • In Mice | This mouse study revealed that dopamine D1 receptor activity mediates ketamine-induced psychotic-like behaviors, with RNA sequencing identifying GTPase pathway genes (Rgs4, Gnai3) as key players, and suggesting Gnai3 expression and serum eotaxin-2 levels as potential biomarkers for ketamine abuse.
• Cardiac effects of two hallucinogenic natural products, N,N-dimethyl-tryptamine and 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyl-tryptamine
  • In Mice and Cells | This laboratory study found that DMT and 5-MeO-DMT can increase heart muscle contraction force through activation of serotonin 5-HT4 receptors in both human heart tissue and genetically modified mice, suggesting potential cardiac effects of these psychedelics.
• Development of Bioisosteric Iboga-alkaloids as Antinociceptive and Anxiolytic Agents with Neuroprotective Effects
  • In Mice | This pre-print mouse study found that newly synthesized benzofuran-containing iboga analogs, particularly the Endo-iboga analogs (C2 and C4), demonstrated superior anti-inflammatory properties and pain relief in a formalin-induced acute pain model, with C4 showing the best cardiac safety profile with no significant QTc prolongation during in vivo ECG tests.
• Esketamine Regulates Mitophagy through ULK1/FUNDC1 Signaling Pathway to Improve LPS-induced Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
  • In Mice | This mouse study found that esketamine treatment alleviated lung damage in lipopolysaccharide-induced acute respiratory distress syndrome by improving vascular permeability, reducing inflammation, oxidative stress and apoptosis through activation of mitophagy via the ULK1/FUNDC1 signaling pathway.
• The Prototypical Psychedelic Agent LSD Produces Rapid Antidepressant Effects via 5-HT2B Receptor Activation
  • In Rats | This rat study found that blocking the 5-HT2B receptor prevented LSD’s effects on serotonin neurons and behaviour, including its antidepressant-like effects, suggesting that this receptor is crucial for LSD’s therapeutic potential.
• Psilocybin as a Treatment for Repetitive Mild Head Injury: Evidence from Neuroradiology and Molecular Biology
  • In Rats | This rat study shows that psilocybin may help heal brain damage from repeated mild head injuries by reducing inflammation and swelling, improving blood flow, decreasing harmful protein buildup, and boosting brain repair mechanisms in female rats.
• Dose-dependent changes in global brain activity and functional connectivity following exposure to psilocybin: a BOLD MRI study in awake rats
  • In Rats | This rat study examining brain activity changes in response to varying psilocybin doses in awake rats shows dose-dependent increases in brain activity and connectivity, particularly in sensory processing regions, with females showing greater sensitivity than males, though the patterns differed from those observed in human studies.
• The acute effects of methoxphenidine on behaviour and pharmacokinetics profile in animal model
  • In Rats | This rat study demonstrated that methoxphenidine (MXP, ketamine-like), a new psychoactive substance, rapidly crosses the blood-brain barrier and produces dose-dependent effects including stimulation at lower doses and sedation at higher doses, while showing moderate toxicity and disruption of sensorimotor gating.
• Esketamine alleviates cognitive impairment signs induced by modified electroconvulsive therapy in a depression rat model via the KLF4/p38 MAPK pathway
  • In Rats | This rat study shows that esketamine can protect against the cognitive side effects of electroconvulsive therapy whilst maintaining its antidepressant benefits, working through a specific molecular pathway (KLF4) in the brain.
• Psilocybin as a Treatment for Repetitive Mild Head Injury: Evidence from Neuroradiology and Molecular Biology
  • In Rats | This rat study suggests that psilocybin may help mitigate the effects of mild repetitive head injuries by reducing neuroinflammation, restoring vascular function, decreasing phosphorylated tau buildup, and enhancing neuroplasticity-related signalling.
• Effects of chronic social isolation stress and alcohol on the reinforcing properties of ketamine in male and female rats
  • In Rats | This study in rats found that females self-administered more ketamine than males, with alcohol history increasing ketamine intake in females and both isolation and alcohol independently increasing intake in males, suggesting the need for sex-specific considerations when using ketamine to treat depression in patients with alcohol use history.
• A new module in the drug development process: preclinical multi-center randomized controlled trial of R-ketamine on alcohol relapse
  • In Rats | This trial in rats found that ketamine (20mg/kg) significantly reduced alcohol relapse, while R-ketamine (40mg/kg) showed sex-dependent efficacy, being effective in females at lower doses than males due to pharmacokinetic differences that resulted in two-fold higher plasma levels in females.
• Pharmacokinetics of combinations of dexmedetomidine, vatinoxan and ketamine in male neutered cats
  • In Cats | This pharmacokinetic study in cats (n=6) investigated the interactions between ketamine, dexmedetomidine, and vatinoxan across different administration routes, finding that vatinoxan increases dexmedetomidine clearance and decreases intramuscular ketamine bioavailability.
• Toxicokinetics and analytical toxicology of the phenmetrazine-derived new psychoactive substance 3,4-methylenedioxyphenmetrazine studied by means of in vitro systems
  • In Cells | This in vitro study characterised the pharmacological properties of the new psychoactive substance MDPM, revealing CYP2D6-dependent metabolism, potential drug interactions through CYP inhibition, and recommended urine screening targets for toxicology testing.
• Structural basis for channel gating and blockade in tri-heteromeric GluN1-2B-2D NMDA receptor
  • In Cells | This structural biology study reveals the molecular mechanisms of tri-heteromeric NMDA receptor activation and S-(+)-ketamine blockade, identifying how ligand-dependent conformational changes in GluN1-2B-2D receptors control channel function and selective inhibition.
• Phenethylaminylation: Preliminary In Vitro Evidence for the Covalent Transamidation of Psychedelic Phenethylamines to Glial Proteins using 3,5-Dimethoxy-4-(2-Propynyloxy)-Phenethylamine as a Model Compound
  • In Cells | This pre-print laboratory study proposes that psychedelics like mescaline may create lasting neuropsychiatric benefits by covalently modifying proteins through a process called “phenethylaminylation,” with preliminary evidence showing these modifications occurring on various glial proteins in human astrocyte cultures.
• Chiral Separation and Determination of Enantiomer Elution Order of Novel Ketamine Derivatives Using CE-UV and HPLC-UV-ORD
  • Chemistry | This analytical chemistry study developed and compared methods for separating ketamine and its derivatives into their mirror-image forms (enantiomers) using two techniques: high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and capillary electrophoresis (CE), providing valuable tools for analysing these emerging compounds on the illicit drug market.
• Efficient and modular synthesis of ibogaine and related alkaloids
  • Synthesis | This synthetic chemistry study reports a new method for producing ibogaine and related compounds at gram-scale, discovering that while the unnatural form of ibogaine was inactive, a novel fluorinated analogue showed promising biological effects on serotonin transport and neuronal growth.
• Ketamine, a new (or old) kid on the block: A comprehensive three-year spatio-temporal study in Belgium through wastewater-based epidemiology
  • Monitoring | This wastewater epidemiology study (n=716 samples) analysing ketamine biomarkers in Belgian wastewater throughout 2023 found widespread use across urban and rural areas, with 7-11 times higher levels than in 2012 and increased weekend consumption suggesting recreational use patterns.
• Development of Psilocybe mushroom species reference material-cultivation parameters and chemical profiles
  • Analysis | This cultivation and chemical analysis study examining six Psilocybe mushroom species found significant variation in psilocybin content (0.45-1.89%) between species, demonstrating successful indoor cultivation methods and identifying that freezing before freeze-drying reduces psilocybin while increasing psilocin levels.
• Quantitative analysis of recreational psychoactive mushroom gummies in Portland, Oregon
  • Analysis | This laboratory analysis (n=8) of psychoactive mushroom gummies sold in Portland smoke shops found widespread inaccurate labelling, with seven products containing psilocin, products claiming to contain Amanita muscaria instead containing serotonergic tryptamines, and one supposedly psilocybin-free product actually containing psilocybin, raising significant consumer safety concerns.
• Acute complications and treatment in critically ill patients with 3,4-methylenedioxymetamfetamine intoxication: a 10-year retrospective observational study in an intensive care unit in an Amsterdam hospital
  • Safety | This retrospective cohort study (n=74) of MDMA intoxication cases admitted to intensive care in Amsterdam found that the most common reasons for admission were threatened airway due to trismus (47%), hyponatraemia (39%), and hyperthermia (11%), with hyperthermia patients developing the most severe complications and a 4% mortality rate overall.
• Preparations for rave music parties and consequences for attendees who consume psychedelic drugs
  • Safety | This qualitative study (n=27) of Israeli rave music party attendees who consume psychedelics identified five preparation themes (physical, anticipatory, cognitive, social, and logistic) and four consequence themes (physical, emotional, cognitive, and social), suggesting these events function as liminal rites of passage with transformative potential, leading researchers to recommend drug-checking policies to reduce harm.
• Rising incidence of recreational ketamine use: Clinical cases and management in emergency settings
  • Safety | This review highlights the increasing ketamine use in Dutch nightlife settings, emphasizing its rising involvement in first aid incidents, particularly when combined with alcohol or MDMA, and recommends including ketamine in routine toxicology screening to improve diagnosis and care.
• Ketamine cholangiopathy: clinical features and liver biopsy findings
  • Safety | This retrospective analysis (n=8) describes a condition called ketamine cholangiopathy in long-term ketamine users, showing bile duct abnormalities similar to but less severe than primary sclerosing cholangitis, with symptoms improving upon ketamine cessation.
• Molecular mechanism of programmed cell death in drug-induced neuronal damage: A special focus on ketamine-induced neurotoxicity
  • Safety | This review examines how ketamine-induced neurotoxicity may operate through various forms of programmed cell death, aiming to identify potential therapeutic targets for treating neurological complications from ketamine abuse.
• Neurotoxicity mechanisms and clinical implications of six common recreational drugs
  • Safety | This review discusses how recreational ketamine use can cause neurotoxicity through impairing glutamatergic transmission and mitochondrial function, leading to excitotoxicity and neuronal apoptosis, while noting that treatment options remain limited and focused primarily on symptom management.
• Internship Report at the EMCDDA ‘s Public Health Unit – Insights into the Medical Use of Psychedelic Substances in the EU: regulatory frameworks, public health challenges and future directions
  • Thesis | This master’s thesis in Public Health from 2023/2024 examines regulatory frameworks, public health challenges, and future directions for medical use of psychedelic substances in the European Union, conducted as an internship report at the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA).
• Enhancing Provider Education on the Concomitant Use of Psychedelic Substances and Psychotropic Medications
  • Thesis | This thesis examined an educational intervention for healthcare providers (n=1) about drug interactions between psychedelics (LSD, psilocybin, and MDMA) and psychotropic medications, showing some improvement in provider knowledge and confidence despite limited participation affecting statistical significance.
• Psilocybin-Induced Structural Plasticity and the Role of 5-HT2A Receptors
  • Thesis | This thesis explores psilocybin’s neurobiological mechanisms through three studies, demonstrating that single-dose administration induces sustained structural plasticity in frontal cortex neurons, with effects mediated specifically through 5-HT2A receptors on pyramidal tract neurons, suggesting a common neural plasticity mechanism shared with other rapid-acting antidepressants.
• A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of repeated microdoses of lysergic acid diethylamide in healthy volunteers
  • Thesis | This thesis describes the first long-term home-based microdosing study (n=80) investigating safety, effects, and neurobiological mechanisms of repeated 10μg LSD doses over six weeks, finding the practice relatively safe with acute positive mood effects but no durable changes, though EEG data suggested altered neural connectivity that may warrant further exploration for mood disorders.
• Bioanalysis and metabolic investigation of psychoactive substances
  • Thesis | This thesis developed four validated analytical methods for measuring psychedelics (mescaline, diamorphine, MDMA) and their metabolites in blood, and investigated psilocin metabolism, identifying CYP2D6, CYP3A4, and MAO-A as key enzymes involved and discovering two previously unknown metabolites (norpsilocin in mice and an oxidized form in humans).
• The Hallucinogen Rating Scale: Updated Factor Structure in a Large, Multistudy Sample
  • Scale Development | This factor analysis study (n=991) examining the Hallucinogen Rating Scale across 13 psychoactive substances revealed eight distinct factors that effectively differentiated between classic psychedelics (psilocybin, DMT), dissociatives (ketamine), and other substances (MDMA), with meaningfulness emerging as a unique characteristic of psychedelics.
• The road to Aha: A recipe for mental breakthroughs
  • Theory Development | This theoretical paper (which covers psychedelics) proposes a unified framework for understanding mental breakthroughs, suggesting that diverse insight experiences – from everyday problem-solving to profound personal transformations – share core mechanisms of tension, altered salience, and enhanced flexibility that operate along a continuum of intensity.
• Prediction of individual treatment allocation between electroconvulsive therapy or ketamine using the Personalized Advantage Index
  • Machine Learning | This machine learning study (n=392) used electronic health records to develop a treatment selection model between ECT and ketamine for depression, finding that patients who received their predicted optimal treatment showed significantly better outcomes.
• Cultural Humility and Psychedelics: A Framework Analysis of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Manuals and Practice Guidelines
  • Manual Analysis | This preprint analyses five psychedelic-assisted therapy manuals against American Psychological Association multicultural guidelines and finds significant gaps in cultural humility training guidance, highlighting the need for more comprehensive cultural responsiveness in psychedelic therapy protocols.
• Novel Compounds as 5‑HT2A Agonists for Treating Mental Illness or CNS Disorders
  • Patent Highlight | This patent highlights a series of novel 5-HT2A receptor agonist compounds designed for treating various mental illnesses, building on evidence that psychedelics like LSD and psilocybin, which act through similar mechanisms, may have therapeutic benefits at low, non-hallucinogenic doses.
• Novel 3-Cycloaminoindole Compounds as Serotonergic Psychedelic Agents for Treating Psychosis, Mental Illness, and CNS Disorders
  • Patent Highlight | This patent highlights novel 3-cycloaminoindole compounds as serotonergic psychedelics and their potential application in treating mental illness and CNS disorders.
• Novel Indoline Derivatives as Serotonergic Psychedelic Agents for Treating Psychosis, Mental Illness and CNS Disorders
  • Patent Highlight | This patent highlights new indoline derivatives as serotonergic psychedelics and their potential use in treating mental illness and CNS disorders.
• Psychiatric Treatments with Short-Duration Psychedelics and AI-Driven Behavioral Monitoring
  • Patent Highlight | This patent highlight describes a novel approach combining short-acting psychedelics (DMT and psilocybin) with SSRIs, alongside AI-driven behavioral monitoring, to enhance treatment outcomes for psychiatric disorders.
• Integrating Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovations in Psychedelic and Brain Therapeutics
  • Patent Highlight | This patent highlight outlines three innovations: deuterated empathogens for psychiatric treatment, AI-driven digital therapeutics for cognitive enhancement, and AI/ML monitoring systems for wireless networks, representing an integrated approach to mental health and communication technology.

Psychedelic Research in March 2025

Research from March onward is available to all our supporting members.