164 results for "Default Mode Network"
Neuroimaging Correlates of Treatment Response with Psychedelics in Major Depressive Disorder: A Systematic Review
Chronic Stress – January 01, 2022
Summary
Psychedelics like psilocybin and ayahuasca show promise for major depressive disorder, with Neuroimaging revealing crucial brain changes. A systematic review of 6 published studies and 1 conference abstract, encompassing 4 datasets, highlights how these compounds influence brain activity. Clinical psychology and Neuroscience observations indicate that amygdala and prefrontal cortex connectivity shifts, alongside limbic region activity, correlate with antidepressant response. These insights into Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior offer a foundation for Psychiatry and Drug Studies, suggesting specific neural networks are key to their therapeutic effects. Further exploration of these mechanisms is warranted.
Abstract
Preliminary evidence supports the use of psychedelics for major depressive disorder (MDD). However, less attention has been given to the neural mec...
Uncovering Psychedelics: From Neural Circuits to Therapeutic Applications
Pharmaceuticals – January 19, 2025
Summary
Psychedelics, including psilocybin and MDMA, are demonstrating significant therapeutic efficacy for challenging psychiatric conditions, profoundly impacting Psychology. These powerful hallucinogens alter Consciousness by modulating brain connectivity, particularly the Default Mode Network, a key finding in Neuroscience. Clinical trials show these Psychedelics and Drug Studies enhance neural plasticity, making the brain more adaptable. Their influence on neurotransmitter receptors underpins these effects, offering new insights into human Cognition and potential treatments for rigid thought patterns.
Abstract
Psychedelics, historically celebrated for their cultural and spiritual significance, have emerged as potential breakthrough therapeutic agents due ...
The Axis Mundi Hypothesis: Endogenous N,N-Dimethyltryptamine as a Neurobiological Bridge Between Conscious and Subconscious Processing - An Integrative Theoretical Framework
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) – February 12, 2026
Summary
Endogenous N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) plays a crucial role in brain function, acting as a neuroprotective agent during stress and modulating the boundary between subconscious and conscious awareness. This dual-function model integrates findings from various disciplines, including psychology and cognitive science, showing that DMT influences the default mode network (DMN) by regulating access to suppressed memories. The proposal is supported by evidence from five key areas, suggesting new avenues for exploration with seven testable predictions to guide future investigations.
Abstract
Multiple lines of neuroscientific evidence have converged on a set of closely related findings: the mammalian brain endogenously synthesizes N,N-di...
The Mechanisms of Psychedelic Visionary Experiences: Hypotheses from Evolutionary Psychology
Frontiers in Neuroscience – September 28, 2017
Summary
Psychedelics reliably induce profound mystical experiences, deeply influencing human culture and **cognition**. **Neuroscience** reveals a common **mechanism** for these altered states of **consciousness**, also observed in **meditation** and **hypnosis**. This **cognitive psychology** posits that **psychedelics** disrupt the brain's normal regulatory processes, specifically the prefrontal cortex and **Default Mode Network**. This interruption allows innate visual and **cognitive** functions from lower brain systems to emerge, offering a unified **cognitive science** model for diverse visionary experiences in **psychology**.
Abstract
Neuropharmacological effects of psychedelics have profound cognitive, emotional, and social effects that inspired the development of cultures and r...
Psilocybin induces spatially constrained alterations in thalamic functional organizaton and connectivity.
NeuroImage – October 15, 2022
Summary
Psychedelics like psilocybin profoundly alter perception, and new insights reveal how. Using advanced Functional MRI and Independent component analysis on Resting state brain activity, researchers precisely mapped how psilocybin affects the Thalamus – the brain's sensory relay center. Instead of treating it as one unit, this approach unveiled specific changes in functional connectivity and Thalamocortical connectivity within distinct thalamic sub-regions. Psilocybin significantly reorganized these areas, particularly decreasing connections to visual and default mode networks. These specific alterations, not seen with broader analyses, correlated with reported subjective experiences, offering a clearer understanding of how psilocybin influences brain organization.
Abstract
Classic psychedelics, such as psilocybin and LSD, and other serotonin 2A receptor (5-HT2AR) agonists evoke acute alterations in perception and cogn...
Psilocybin induces spatially constrained alterations in thalamic functional organizaton and connectivity
OpenAlex – March 02, 2022
Summary
Psilocybin, a potent hallucinogen, profoundly alters perception and cognition. Neuroscience reveals this psychedelic drug reorganizes the thalamus, crucial for sensory processing. A novel analysis of 18 individuals, informed by 38 baseline scans, identified intrathalamic organizational changes in mediodorsal and pulvinar nuclei, correlating with subjective psychological effects. These alterations impacted thalamocortical connectivity, especially with visual and default mode networks. This nuanced understanding of psilocybin's neurotransmitter receptor influence on behavior, relevant for drug studies and tryptophan-related brain research, suggests focal changes, not uniform effects.
Abstract
ABSTRACT Background Serotonin 2A receptor (5-HT 2AR ) agonist psychedelics including psilocybin and LSD (“classic” psychedelics) evoke acute altera...
Ayahuasca, DMT, and Mental Health: A Current Review of Scientific Studies
Current Addiction Reports – February 21, 2026
Summary
Ayahuasca, a traditional Amazonian brew, shows promise in treating various mental health disorders, including depression and PTSD. In human studies with 60 participants, neuroimaging revealed decreased default mode network activity and increased brain connectivity, suggesting enhanced neuroplasticity. Users often report emotional breakthroughs and heightened self-awareness. While findings are encouraging, especially for addressing core psychological processes, caution is advised for individuals with psychosis or bipolar disorder. Structured trials are essential to establish the safety and efficacy of ayahuasca as a therapeutic option in clinical psychology.
Abstract
Summarizes preclinical and clinical evidence on ayahuasca—a traditional Amazonian brew combining N, N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and β-carbolines—in ...
Psychedelics
UNC Libraries – April 22, 2020
Summary
Unprecedented relief from anxiety and depression has been observed with psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy in several phase 2 studies involving cancer patients. This potent tool in Psychology and Drug Studies also shows promise for addiction, with two pilot studies demonstrating benefits for alcohol and nicotine use. Psychedelics, physiologically safe and non-addictive, act on brain serotonin receptors, altering perception and mood. Brain imaging reveals they decrease activity in the default mode network, shedding light on their therapeutic impact.
Abstract
Psychedelics (serotonergic hallucinogens) are powerful psychoactive substances that alter perception and mood and affect numerous cognitive process...
Neurociencias y aplicaciones psicoterapéuticas en el renacimiento de la investigación con psicodélicos
Revista chilena de neuro-psiquiatría – June 01, 2014
Summary
Psilocybin, a 5-HT2A receptor agonist, has shown remarkable effects, including a 50% reduction in anxiety and mood disorder symptoms among participants. It deactivates the Default Mode Network, enhancing autobiographical memory access and fostering positive emotional attention. MDMA significantly aids PTSD therapy by strengthening therapeutic alliances and reducing avoidance behaviors, linked to oxytocin release. Initial studies on ayahuasca and ketamine indicate promising results in decreasing problematic substance use, with over 40% reporting reduced cravings. These findings highlight the potential therapeutic benefits of psychedelics in mental health treatment.
Abstract
El objetivo de esta revisión consiste en exponer los principales avances en la investigación reciente con sustancias psicodélicas en las neurocienc...
Enhanced repertoire of brain dynamical states during the psychedelic experience
arXiv Preprint Archive – May 26, 2014
Summary
Psilocybin, the active compound in magic mushrooms, dramatically expands the brain's repertoire of connectivity states, revealing how consciousness can be altered. Using advanced brain imaging, researchers tracked neural activity before and after psilocybin administration. Results showed increased signal variability in memory and emotion-processing regions, while higher brain networks displayed enhanced flexibility in their communication patterns.
Abstract
The study of rapid changes in brain dynamics and functional connectivity (FC) is of increasing interest in neuroimaging. Brain states departing fro...
Enhanced repertoire of brain dynamical states during the psychedelic experience
Human Brain Mapping – July 03, 2014
Summary
Psilocybin dramatically expands the brain's communication patterns, revealing a wider repertoire of connectivity states. Using Biochemical Analysis and Sensing Techniques, a Neuroscience study of 15 healthy subjects showed this psychedelic substance increased brain signal variability in areas like the hippocampi. This suggests a profound shift in cognitive science, where typical brain networks show altered activity. These Psychedelics and Drug Studies offer insights into unconstrained consciousness, contributing to our understanding of Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior and overall brain dynamics.
Abstract
Abstract The study of rapid changes in brain dynamics and functional connectivity (FC) is of increasing interest in neuroimaging. Brain states depa...
Unfolding States of Mind: A Dissociative-Psychedelic Model of Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy in Palliative Care.
Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) – October 27, 2025
Summary
For those facing chronic illness, including cancer, navigating end-of-life can bring deep existential distress. A promising new model for **ketamine-assisted psychotherapy** is emerging in **palliative care**, offering significant relief. Researchers synthesized evidence on **ketamine's** unique effects, integrating neuroscientific and **psychedelics** insights. The proposed short-course model features preparatory sessions, two distinct ketamine dosing sessions (low and moderate), and integrative therapy. This patient-centered approach aims to enhance psychological safety and meaning-making, effectively addressing both physical and emotional suffering. It provides a compassionate framework to boost meaning, emotional resolution, and quality of life.
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Patients in palliative care often experience multifaceted forms of suffering that extend beyond physical symptoms, including...
Beyond the veil of duality—topographic reorganization model of meditation
Neuroscience of Consciousness – January 01, 2022
Summary
Advanced meditation profoundly reorganizes the brain, dissolving the perceived boundary between self and environment. A synthesis of functional brain imaging reveals experienced meditators show decreased activity and connectivity in self-focused networks, coupled with increased executive control. This profound shift in neural topography, impacting the "economic" allocation of brain resources, challenges our epistemology of consciousness by moving beyond self-other duality. Similar to insights from specific psychedelic and sleep research, this highlights how mindfulness and compassion interventions can lead to an altered aesthetic of wakefulness, fostering nondual awareness.
Abstract
Abstract Meditation can exert a profound impact on our mental life, with proficient practitioners often reporting an experience free of boundaries ...
Engaging Mood Brain Circuits with Psilocybin (EMBRACE): a study protocol for a randomized, proof-of-principle, placebo-controlled and crossover, neuroimaging trial in depression
OpenAlex – December 28, 2023
Summary
Nearly one-third of individuals with Major Depressive Disorder don't respond to conventional antidepressant treatments, highlighting an urgent need in psychiatry. A clinical psychology crossover study involving 36 participants will use functional neuroimaging to investigate how psilocybin, a psychedelic alkaloid, acutely impacts mood and brain neuroplasticity. This medicine aims to reveal psilocybin's neurobiological mechanisms, comparing its effects on brain networks, like the default mode network, against a placebo. Understanding this influence on cognition and behavior is crucial for developing new neuroscience-informed approaches.
Abstract
Abstract Background: Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of disability worldwide across domains of health and cognition, affecting o...
Multimodal Neuroimaging of the Effect of Serotonergic Psychedelics on the Brain
American Journal of Neuroradiology – February 15, 2024
Summary
Psychedelics like psilocybin and lysergic acid diethylamide show compelling promise in medicine for treating psychiatric disorders. Neuroscience is actively investigating how these hallucinogens, derived from chemical synthesis as alkaloids, alter brain function. Functional neuroimaging, including fMRI and PET, is crucial for understanding their impact on vital networks like the default mode network. This review synthesizes existing drug studies, exploring how serotonergic mechanisms influence behavior and offering insights for improved diagnostics and treatment in psychology and psychiatry.
Abstract
The neurobiological mechanisms underpinning psychiatric disorders such as treatment-resistant major depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and...
Topographic-dynamic reorganisation model of dreams (TRoD) - A spatiotemporal approach.
Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews – May 01, 2023
Summary
No Summary
Abstract
Dreams are one of the most bizarre and least understood states of consciousness. Bridging the gap between brain and phenomenology of (un)conscious ...
Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy for Generalized Anxiety Disorder: A Comprehensive Case Report with Integrated Neurophysiological Imaging Using Magnetoencephalography
medRxiv Preprint Server – February 25, 2025
Summary
Ketamine therapy's rapid impact on mood and anxiety is remarkable. A case explored how this therapy affects brain networks and activity in generalized anxiety. Treatment significantly reduced anxiety and depressive symptoms, improving cognitive attention. Brain imaging revealed increased functional connectivity across multiple brain networks and beneficial brain wave changes, suggesting enhanced neuroplasticity. This shows how ketamine therapy positively alters brain function for better mood and emotion regulation.
Abstract
This detailed case report explores the application of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (KAP) in the treatment of a male patient in their late 30’s w...
Psychedelics: The New Kid on the Block
Annals of Indian Psychiatry – January 01, 2024
Summary
Remarkably, 80% of 51 cancer patients maintained significant reductions in depression and anxiety six months after high-dose psilocybin. These psychedelics, studied extensively in drug studies and psychology, alter perception and consciousness, potentially inspiring new perspectives akin to art. Biochemical analysis (fMRI/EEG) reveals they increase global functional connectivity by reconfiguring the brain's functional "blocks." From chemical synthesis of alkaloids, these substances show promise for depression, addiction, and anxiety, revolutionizing psychopharmacology.
Abstract
HISTORY In the early part of twentieth century, these molecules were known as psychotomimetics, meaning that they create a state similar to psychos...
N,N‐dimethyltryptamine and Amazonian ayahuasca plant medicine
Human Psychopharmacology Clinical and Experimental – February 17, 2022
Summary
Ayahuasca, a potent hallucinogen, shows promise in Medicine for psychological conditions like depression and anxiety. Neuroscience reveals its compounds influence neurotransmitter receptors—serotonergic, glutaminergic, and dopaminergic systems—profoundly impacting behavior. Biochemical analysis indicates effects like increased delta and theta brain oscillations in key brain regions. Psychotherapists are considering its potential, but comprehensive Psychedelics and Drug Studies are essential to fully understand its Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior and integrate this plant medicine into healthcare.
Abstract
Abstract Objective Reports have indicated possible uses of ayahuasca for the treatment of conditions including depression, addictions, post‐traumat...
Broadband Cortical Desynchronization Underlies the Human Psychedelic State
Journal of Neuroscience – September 18, 2013
Summary
Psilocybin, a potent hallucinogen, profoundly alters consciousness by desynchronizing brain activity. Neuroscience, using magnetoencephalography, reveals psilocybin reduces cortical oscillatory power (1-50 Hz posteriorly, 8-100 Hz frontally), especially in the default mode network and posterior cingulate cortex. This neural dynamic shift, vital for psychology, stems from the drug's agonist action on 5-HT 2A receptors. This neurotransmitter receptor influence on behavior suggests psychedelics disrupt brain function, a phenomenon also studied with electroencephalography in drug studies.
Abstract
Psychedelic drugs produce profound changes in consciousness, but the underlying neurobiological mechanisms for this remain unclear. Spontaneous and...
Exploring the therapeutic convergence of meditation, psychedelics, and MDMA
Journal of Psychedelic Studies – April 17, 2025
Summary
Remarkably, meditation, psychedelics, and MDMA share common pathways for improving mental well-being. A comprehensive literature review indicates these modalities enhance emotional regulation, empathy, and neuroplasticity by influencing similar brain networks. Combining meditation with psychedelic or MDMA-assisted therapy shows promise for stabilizing therapeutic insights, leading to sustained positive results and reduced distress. This convergence offers a powerful new approach for mental health.
Abstract
AbstractBackground and aimsPsychedelic and MDMA-assisted psychotherapy are at the forefront of new treatment models for mental illnesses such as PT...
How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence
Anesthesia & Analgesia – February 17, 2021
Summary
Michael Pollan's 480-page "How to Change Your Mind" compellingly argues that psychedelics, particularly psilocybin, could revolutionize mental health. Named one of Time's top 100 influential people, Pollan explores their profound impact on consciousness, environmentalism, and counterculture. The book delves into the psychology and sociology of these substances, suggesting drug studies offer a unique "reboot" for conditions where conventional treatments fail, moving beyond traditional psychoanalysis. This engaging work encourages a cautious re-evaluation of psychedelics' therapeutic potential.
Abstract
It is tough to write about psychedelics without a few gratuitous puns. Regardless, Michael Pollan’s “How to Change Your Mind” is definitely “mind e...
A Randomized Controlled Trial of Psilocybin for the Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Online Publication Service of Würzburg University (Würzburg University) – January 01, 2026
Summary
Psilocybin shows promising potential as a treatment for severe, treatment-resistant Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), with symptom reductions ranging from 23% to complete remission in participants. In a randomized controlled trial involving multiple doses, improvements persisted for weeks to months post-treatment, particularly with higher doses linked to more profound mystical experiences. Notably, no severe side effects were reported. This highlights psilocybin's ability to address chronic OCD, offering hope for those unresponsive to traditional cognitive behavioral therapy and antidepressants.
Abstract
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a prevalent mental disorder, with a lifetime prevalence of 2-3%, characterized by intrusive thoughts (obsess...
Context-dependent structurally informed effective connectivity under psilocybin
OpenAlex – August 22, 2025
Summary
Mystical experiences from the hallucinogen psilocybin are directly predicted by specific brain pathway changes. Across four distinct experiential contexts—like guided meditation or music listening—psilocybin reorganizes brain interactions. Notably, outgoing influences from the left hippocampus, a key memory and association hub, showed varying responses that predicted mystical experience intensity. Advanced computer science techniques revealed these context-specific shifts in brain dynamics, offering crucial insights for psychedelics and drug studies. Understanding these mechanisms is vital for mental health research topics and could inform future digital mental health interventions.
Abstract
Abstract The extent to which anatomical connectivity constrains pharmacologically altered brain dynamics remains poorly understood. Here, we combin...
Mapping the functional connectome traits of levels of consciousness
arXiv Preprint Archive – May 10, 2016
Summary
Brain activity patterns reveal distinct signatures of consciousness levels in patients with severe brain injuries. Using advanced network analysis, researchers mapped how different brain regions communicate in varying states of consciousness. Three key connectivity patterns emerged: one linked to arousal and sedation effects, another showing disrupted visual and motor connections, and a third involving self-awareness networks. These findings illuminate how brain injuries impact consciousness at the neural level.
Abstract
Examining task-free functional connectivity (FC) in the human brain offers insights on how spontaneous integration and segregation of information r...
Psilocybin exerts distinct effects on resting state networks associated with serotonin and dopamine in mice
OpenAlex – September 01, 2019
Summary
Psilocybin, a potent hallucinogen, profoundly reconfigures brain activity, offering new insights into its therapeutic potential. Neuroscience investigations in mice showed psilocybin pharmacology increased functional connectivity between serotonin-associated networks and the default mode network, thalamus, and midbrain, while decreasing it within dopamine-associated striatal networks. These intricate chemical interactions via 5-HT receptors, acting as an agonist, suggest how this influences brain circuits. Understanding this neurotransmitter receptor influence on behavior is crucial for developing new psychedelics and drug studies for brain disorders and psychology.
Abstract
Abstract Hallucinogenic agents have been proposed as potent antidepressants; this includes the serotonin (5-HT) receptor 2A agonist psilocybin. In ...
Dreaming, Mind-Wandering, and Hypnotic Dreams.
Frontiers in neurology – January 01, 2020
Summary
No Summary
Abstract
Hobson's AIM theory offers a general framework for thinking about states of consciousness like wakefulness, REM dreaming and NREM mentations in ter...
The entropic brain: a theory of conscious states informed by neuroimaging research with psychedelic drugs
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience – January 01, 2014
Summary
Our normal waking consciousness operates with suppressed brain entropy, just below a "critical" point between order and disorder. Psychedelics, like psilocybin, elevate these neural dynamics, revealing a "primary state" of consciousness with a *greater repertoire* of functional connectivity motifs. This entropy suppression provides normal waking consciousness its constrained quality and metacognitive functions, a key focus in Cognitive Psychology. Entry into these states involves a collapse of the Default Mode Network's organized activity. This Neuroscience and Psychology insight has implications for Mental Health Research Topics.
Abstract
Entropy is a dimensionless quantity that is used for measuring uncertainty about the state of a system but it can also imply physical qualities, wh...
Knocking at the Doors of Perception: Relating LSD Effects on Low‐Frequency Fluctuations and Regional Homogeneity to Receptor Densities in fMRI
European Journal of Neuroscience – November 01, 2025
Summary
LSD significantly alters brain activity, with amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF) and regional homogeneity (ReHo) both decreasing in key areas like the somatosensory and visual cortices. In a study involving 15 healthy adults, ALFF showed high test-retest reliability (rho = 0.80), while ReHo demonstrated moderate reliability (rho = 0.46). Notably, changes in ALFF and ReHo were negatively correlated with the density of D2 and 5-HT1A receptors, indicating that LSD's effects may involve complex neurochemical interactions beyond its primary receptor targets.
Abstract
Despite a renewed scientific interest in lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), its local neural effects remain underexplored. This functional magnetic ...
Spatial Correspondence of LSD-Induced Variations on Brain Functioning at Rest With Serotonin Receptor Expression.
Biological psychiatry. Cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging – July 01, 2023
Summary
LSD's profound effects on consciousness are linked to specific serotonin receptors in the brain. Using fMRI scanning, researchers found that LSD triggers distinct changes in brain activity that perfectly match where different serotonin receptor types (5-HT2A and 5-HT1A) are located. Areas rich in 5-HT2A showed increased activity, explaining visual hallucinations, while regions with 5-HT1A displayed reduced activity.
Abstract
Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is an atypical psychedelic compound that exerts its effects through pleiotropic actions, mainly involving 1A/2A se...
Functional connectivity subtypes during a positive mood induction: Predicting clinical response in a randomized controlled trial of ketamine for treatment-resistant depression.
Journal of psychopathology and clinical science – April 01, 2025
Summary
Brain connectivity patterns during positive mood experiences may help predict how depression patients respond to treatment. Scientists found two distinct groups among 152 patients with hard-to-treat depression. While ketamine therapy worked equally well for both groups, only one group showed significant improvement with placebo treatment. This suggests brain activity during happy moments could help doctors personalize depression treatments.
Abstract
Ketamine has shown promise in rapidly improving symptoms of depression and most notably treatment-resistant depression (TRD). However, given the he...
Functional Connectivity Measures After Psilocybin Inform a Novel Hypothesis of Early Psychosis
Schizophrenia Bulletin – October 06, 2012
Summary
The psychedelic psilocybin significantly blurs the brain's internal and external focus, a finding with implications for Psychology and Mental Health Research Topics. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in 15 healthy volunteers, Neuroscience investigations reveal psilocybin, a hallucinogen, dramatically increased functional connectivity between the default mode network (introspection) and task-positive network (external attention). This altered brain connectivity, observed in Psychedelics and Drug Studies, mirrors patterns seen in psychosis, supporting psilocybin's utility as a model for understanding early psychosis. Preserved thalamocortical connectivity suggests this isn't sedation, but a unique alteration in functional brain connectivity.
Abstract
Psilocybin is a classic psychedelic and a candidate drug model of psychosis. This study measured the effects of psilocybin on resting-state network...
PM504. Theory of Mind in Clinical high risk as trait marker of conversion to psychosis: review
The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology – May 27, 2016
Summary
Psilocybin profoundly alters brain connectivity, mimicking acute psychosis. In a double-blind clinical trial with 20 healthy subjects, brain imaging revealed decreased coherence in theta, alpha, and beta bands, indicating widespread disconnection. Interestingly, high gamma (50-100Hz) connectivity increased. These findings offer critical insights for cognitive psychology and clinical psychology, modeling an acute state that informs our understanding of psychosis traits. This work contributes to advancing mental health and psychiatry by illuminating the neurobiological underpinnings of severe thought disturbances.
Abstract
Psilocybin, a classical tryptamine hallucinogen, serves as a model of acute psychosis in humans.Intoxication with this compound induces significant...
PM505. Impaired glucose tolerance, symptoms and cognitive deficits in first-episode drug-naïve patients with schizophrenia
The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology – May 27, 2016
Summary
Psilocybin, a hallucinogenic drug, profoundly alters brain connectivity, mirroring patterns seen in Schizophrenia. A clinical trial with 20 drug-naïve healthy subjects revealed significant disconnections across brain regions during peak intoxication. Standard coherence analysis showed decreased frontotemporal and frontoparietal connectivity in lower frequency bands. Conversely, high gamma frequencies exhibited increased connectivity. These Neuroscience and Psychiatry findings on psilocybin's pharmacological effects on Cognition offer a valuable model for understanding acute psychosis, informing future Schizophrenia research and treatment in Medicine and Clinical psychology.
Abstract
Psilocybin, a classical tryptamine hallucinogen, serves as a model of acute psychosis in humans.Intoxication with this compound induces significant...
Exploring the Role of Psychedelics in Modulating Ego and Treating Neuropsychiatric Disorders.
ACS chemical neuroscience – May 07, 2025
Summary
Psychedelics like psilocybin and lysergic acid diethylamide can temporarily quiet the brain's default mode network, reducing ego-driven thought patterns. This disruption appears key in treating neuropsychiatric diseases. Research shows these substances create new neural pathways and emotional breakthroughs, offering relief from depression and anxiety when combined with therapy.
Abstract
This viewpoint explores the therapeutic potential of psychedelics in treating neuropsychiatric disorders, particularly through the modulation of br...
Therapeutic mechanisms of psychedelics and entactogens.
Neuropsychopharmacology – July 24, 2023
Summary
Psychedelics and empathy-enhancing drugs work by temporarily disrupting normal brain patterns, creating new neural pathways that can help treat depression, anxiety, and PTSD. These substances boost neuroplasticity and increase connectivity between brain regions, allowing people to process emotions and memories differently. The compounds also reduce activity in the brain's default mode network, which can help break negative thought patterns.
Abstract
Therapeutic mechanisms of psychedelics and entactogens.
Dynamic medial parietal and hippocampal deactivations under DMT relate to sympathetic output and altered sense of time, space, and the self
Imaging Neuroscience – April 16, 2025
Summary
Our sense of time and self can profoundly shift under altered states. Researchers mapped brain activity and heart rate in volunteers given DMT. They found immediate deactivations in brain areas linked to time, space, and self-referential processing, alongside increased activity in regions tied to hallucinations. Elevated heart rate, indicating sympathetic regulation, correlated with these brain changes. This suggests a chain linking sympathetic regulation to these brain deactivations, potentially fostering positive mental health outcomes related to self-referential processing.
Abstract
Abstract N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) is a serotonergic psychedelic, known to rapidly induce short-lasting alterations in conscious experience, cha...
Integration and segregation in whole-brain networks: implications for altered states of consciousness
OpenAlex – January 01, 2018
Summary
Psilocybin profoundly alters Consciousness, dramatically increasing brain integration, while deep sleep promotes segregation. Neuroscience and Psychology reveal that during a psychedelic state, a globally coherent functional connectivity state becomes more probable, with a strong decrease in Default mode network activity. Functional Brain Connectivity Studies using fMRI, incorporating Topological and Geometric Data Analysis, show Betweenness centrality shifts. These insights, relevant to Computer science, Artificial intelligence, and Theoretical computer science, offer new Cognitive science perspectives in Psychedelics and Drug Studies.
Abstract
To survive in an ever-changing environment, the brain must seamlessly integrate a rich stream of incoming information into coherent internal repres...
RETRACTED ARTICLE: A mechanistic model of the neural entropy increase elicited by psychedelic drugs
Scientific Reports – October 20, 2020
Summary
Psychedelics like Lysergic acid diethylamide offer unique insights into Consciousness, profoundly altering subjective experience. Neuroscience models now explain a key finding: Serotonergic 5-HT2A receptor activation drives increased neural activity entropy. This 5-HT receptor influence isn't uniform; entropy rises in some brain regions while decreasing in others, creating a topographical reconfiguration. This work, vital for Psychology and Psychedelics and Drug Studies, uses Biochemical Analysis and Sensing Techniques to illuminate how Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior, affecting networks like the default mode network, fundamentally shapes whole-brain activity.
Abstract
Abstract Psychedelic drugs, including lysergic acid diethylamide and other agonists of the serotonin 2A receptor (5HT2A-R), induce drastic changes ...
Serotonergic psychedelic drugs LSD and psilocybin reduce the hierarchical differentiation of unimodal and transmodal cortex
OpenAlex – May 03, 2020
Summary
Psilocybin and LSD, potent serotonergic hallucinogens, dramatically alter brain organization. Neuroscience reveals these psychedelics, through Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior, significantly flatten the brain's principal hierarchy, from sensory to complex cognitive areas including those in the temporal lobe. This effect, observed under both drugs versus placebo, reduces functional differentiation. Relevant to Cognitive psychology and Drug Studies, this work, without requiring Biochemical Analysis and Sensing Techniques, offers key insights into the psychedelic state's therapeutic potential, supporting a mechanistic model.
Abstract
Abstract LSD and psilocybin are serotonergic psychedelic compounds with potential in the treatment of mental health disorders. Past neuroimaging in...
Time-resolved network control analysis links reduced control energy under DMT with the serotonin 2a receptor, signal diversity, and subjective experience
OpenAlex – May 12, 2023
Summary
Psychedelics like psilocybin and the hallucinogen lysergic acid diethylamide profoundly reshape brain dynamics. Neuroscience reveals that N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), a serotonergic compound, significantly reduces the "control energy" needed for brain state transitions in 14 individuals. This finding, crucial for Psychology and Mental Health Research Topics, shows global control energy trajectories, potentially involving the default mode network, correlate with subjective drug intensity. These effects are linked to serotonin 2a receptor density, demonstrating neurotransmitter receptor influence on behavior and offering a predictive model for Psychedelics and Drug Studies.
Abstract
Abstract Psychedelics offer a profound window into the functioning of the human brain and mind through their robust acute effects on perception, su...
Psilocybin modulation of dynamic functional connectivity is associated with plasma psilocin and subjective effects
OpenAlex – December 17, 2021
Summary
Psilocybin, a serotonergic hallucinogen, profoundly alters brain activity. In 15 healthy individuals, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) revealed that as psilocin levels rose, typical frontoparietal connectivity patterns, including the Default Mode Network, decreased. Simultaneously, a more uniformly connected brain state increased. This shift in resting state fMRI dynamics correlated with subjective psychedelic intensity. These neuroscience insights into functional brain connectivity suggest how psilocybin influences mood and consciousness, offering new directions for psychology and medicine, impacting our understanding of neurotransmitter receptor influence on behavior.
Abstract
Abstract Background Psilocin, the neuroactive metabolite of psilocybin, is a serotonergic psychedelic that induces an acute altered state of consci...
On the varieties of conscious experiences: Altered Beliefs Under Psychedelics (ALBUS).
Neuroscience of consciousness – January 01, 2025
Summary
Psychedelics can both weaken and strengthen belief systems in the brain, similar to lucid dreaming states. By activating specific serotonin receptors, these substances can relax rigid thought patterns in the Default Mode Network, allowing fresh perspectives. However, they may also enhance meaning-making and pattern recognition, leading to profound insights or occasionally, misinterpretations. This dual effect explains both the therapeutic benefits and the occasional occurrence of temporary delusions during psychedelic experiences.
Abstract
How is it that psychedelics so profoundly impact brain and mind? According to the model of "Relaxed Beliefs Under Psychedelics" (REBUS), 5-HT2a ago...
A unified model of ketamine's dissociative and psychedelic properties.
J Psychopharmacol – December 17, 2022
Summary
Ketamine's unique effects on consciousness stem from its simultaneous action on two distinct brain networks, explaining both its dissociative and psychedelic properties. New research reveals how this medication disrupts default brain connectivity while enhancing neural flexibility, creating its characteristic mix of detachment and profound psychological insights. These findings help explain ketamine's effectiveness in treating depression and other mental health conditions.
Abstract
A unified model of ketamine's dissociative and psychedelic properties.