Psychedelics as Medicines: An Emerging New Paradigm

Scientific interest in serotonergic psychedelics (e.g., psilocybin and LSD; 5‐HT2A receptor agonists) has dramatically increased within the last decade. Clinical studies administering psychedelics with psychotherapy have shown preliminary evidence of robust efficacy in treating anxiety and depressio...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics 2017-02, Vol.101 (2), p.209-219
Main Authors: Nichols, DE, Johnson, MW, Nichols, CD
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anxiety - drug therapy
Brain - drug effects
Brain - metabolism
Clinical Trials as Topic
Depression - drug therapy
Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
Hallucinogens - administration & dosage
Hallucinogens - adverse effects
Hallucinogens - pharmacology
Hallucinogens - therapeutic use
Humans
Inflammation - drug therapy
Inflammation - physiopathology
Inflammation Mediators - metabolism
Lysergic Acid Diethylamide - therapeutic use
Mental Disorders - drug therapy
Mind-Body Therapies - methods
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder - drug therapy
Psilocybin - therapeutic use
Psychotherapy - methods
Receptor, Serotonin, 5-HT2A - biosynthesis
Serotonin 5-HT2 Receptor Agonists - pharmacology
Severity of Illness Index
Substance-Related Disorders - drug therapy
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Summary:Scientific interest in serotonergic psychedelics (e.g., psilocybin and LSD; 5‐HT2A receptor agonists) has dramatically increased within the last decade. Clinical studies administering psychedelics with psychotherapy have shown preliminary evidence of robust efficacy in treating anxiety and depression, as well as addiction to tobacco and alcohol. Moreover, recent research has suggested that these compounds have potential efficacy against inflammatory diseases through novel mechanisms, with potential advantages over existing antiinflammatory agents. We propose that psychedelics exert therapeutic effects for psychiatric disorders by acutely destabilizing local brain network hubs and global network connectivity via amplification of neuronal avalanches, providing the occasion for brain network “resetting” after the acute effects have resolved. Antiinflammatory effects may hold promise for efficacy in treatment of inflammation‐related nonpsychiatric as well as potentially for psychiatric disorders. Serotonergic psychedelics operate through unique mechanisms that show promising effects for a variety of intractable, debilitating, and lethal disorders, and should be rigorously researched.
ISSN:0009-9236
1532-6535
DOI:10.1002/cpt.557