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- Psychedelic Journal Watch
Psychedelic Journal Watch
Keeping health professionals abreast of the latest research in psychedelic medicine
I. Does Psychotherapy Quantity Change Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Outcomes?
A greater amount of preparatory psychotherapy is associated with a greater reduction in depressive symptoms, according to JAMA Network.
In this systematic review and meta-analysis of 12 psychedelic-assisted therapy clinical trials including 733 participants, quantity of psychotherapy and reduction in depressive symptoms were measured.
More psychotherapy prior to psychedelic dosing sessions was associated with a greater reduction in depression symptoms. Total amount of psychotherapy or post psychedelic integration duration was not associated with a change in depressive symptoms.
According to the authors, “these findings suggest that preparation sessions before psychedelic administration may play an important role in optimizing treatment outcomes in [psychedelic-assisted therapy].”
II. Psilocybin’s Effect on Personality, Psychiatric Symptoms, and Values in Healthy Volunteers
Psilocybin significantly alters life values in healthy participants, according to the Journal of Psychopharmacology.
In this secondary analysis of a phase I, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial, 89 participants received either low dose psilocybin, high dose psilocybin, or placebo; values, personality, and psychiatric symptoms were measured before and after dosing sessions.
There were no between-group differences in personality or psychiatric symptoms, but life values (as measured by Life Changes Inventory) were significantly altered in the psilocybin groups.
According to the authors, “the acute psychedelic experience, namely oceanic boundlessness … mediates self-reported changes in values in healthy volunteers. Findings from this exploratory study are tentative and should be replicated in larger samples.”
III. Biochemical Mechanism of Psychedelics
The hallucinogenic mechanism of psychedelics is mediated by non-standard Gi protein signaling at the Serotonin 2A Receptor (5HT2A-R), according to Nature.
G protein-coupled receptors are common throughout the human body and play critical roles in biochemical signaling. The 5HT2A-R (the brain receptor that classic psychedelics bind to) is thought to be a Gq protein-coupled receptor.
In this study, psychedelic and non-psychedelic 5HT2A-R agonists were compared using in-vivo and in-vitro techniques.
5HT2A-R Gi protein signaling is responsible for the hallucinogenic effects of psychedelics, not the classical Gq protein that is also coupled to the 5HT2A-R.
According to the authors, “our finding uncovers the functional mechanisms underlying the Gi signaling mediated by 5-HT2AR and provides valuable insights for designing psychedelic-based drugs with minimized risk from hallucinogenic effects.”
In 1961, Julius Axelrod found an enzyme, in rabbit lung, capable of transforming tryptamine into DMT. Today, scientists continue to search for endogenous production of DMT in humans.
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