Translational Psychiatry
May 3, 2022
Shira Arluk, Michael A. Matar, Lior Carmi et al.
19 citations
In a rat model of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a single dose of MDMA (5 mg/kg) paired with a trauma reminder cue reduced anxiety-like behaviors and normalized stress-induced changes in brain structure (dendritic complexity in the dentate gyrus and basolateral amygdala) two weeks later. The treatment was effective only when MDMA was combined with memory reactivation; without the trauma cue, no behavioral improvement occurred. Blocking the HPA axis or serotonin receptors (with RU486, ketanserin, or pindolol) prevented these effects, suggesting MDMA's action involves both stress hormone and serotonin systems. The findings indicate MDMA may help update traumatic memories through reconsolidation processes.
Scientific Reports
June 14, 2026
Bar Eilat Yogev, Gal Levi, Noa Efroni et al.
Alcohol consumption before trauma increases vulnerability to PTSD-like symptoms in rats. Rats given ethanol four hours before predator scent stress showed more anxiety-like behavior, heightened startle responses, and greater hippocampal dendritic retraction seven days later. This vulnerability was linked to reduced brain-derived neurotrophic factor and neuropeptide Y, increased hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated channel 1, and loss of neuropeptide Y-Y1 receptor immunoreactivity in the hippocampus—a hypoexcitable, plasticity-resistant state. A single intranasal subanesthetic dose of ketamine delivered via amylolipid nanovesicles one hour after trauma reduced cue-induced freezing and dendritic atrophy, suggesting a potential preventive strategy for alcohol-exposed trauma survivors.
Journal of personality
April 1, 2019
Nirit Soffer-Dudek, Doron Todder, Leah Shelef et al.
Dissociative absorption—a tendency to become deeply immersed in an experience while losing awareness of one's surroundings—is linked to reduced electrical connectivity in the brain. In 84 healthy Israeli soldiers, resting-state EEG showed that those with higher dissociative absorption had decreased coherence (a measure of connectivity) between frontal and occipital regions, and between central and parietal regions. These effects were strongest in the left hemisphere and in slow-wave brain rhythms (theta and delta). The findings suggest that dissociative absorption reflects less integrated cortical activity, offering insight into the neural basis of consciousness and personality.