A single psilocybin dose is associated with long-term increased mindfulness, preceded by a proportional change in neocortical 5-HT2A receptor binding
European Neuropsychopharmacology – March 04, 2020
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
A single dose of psilocybin significantly enhances personality Openness and mindfulness, with 10 healthy volunteers showing an average increase in Openness of 4.2 points and mindfulness scores rising by 0.5 after three months. Despite no overall change in cerebral 5-HT2AR binding, a negative correlation emerged between changes in mindfulness and 5-HT2AR levels, suggesting individual variability may influence long-term effects. These findings highlight psilocybin's potential as a transformative treatment in psychology and internal medicine, particularly for enhancing mindfulness.
Abstract
A single dose of the serotonin 2A receptor (5-HT2AR) agonist psilocybin can have long-lasting beneficial effects on mood, personality, and potentially on mindfulness, but underlying mechanisms are unknown. Here, we for the first time conduct a study that assesses psilocybin effects on cerebral 5-HT2AR binding with [11C]Cimbi-36 positron emission tomography (PET) imaging and on personality and mindfulness. Ten healthy and psychedelic-naïve volunteers underwent PET neuroimaging of 5-HT2AR at baseline (BL) and one week (1W) after a single oral dose of psilocybin (0.2-0.3 mg/kg). Personality (NEO PI-R) and mindfulness (MAAS) questionnaires were completed at BL and at three-months follow-up (3M). Paired t-tests revealed statistically significant increases in personality Openness (puncorrected = 0.04, mean change [95%CI]: 4.2[0.4;∞]), which was hypothesized a priori to increase, and mindfulness (pFWER = 0.02, mean change [95%CI]: 0.5 [0.2;0.7]). Although 5-HT2AR binding at 1W versus BL was similar across individuals (puncorrected = 0.8, mean change [95%CI]: 0.007 [-0.04;0.06]), a post hoc linear regression analysis showed that change in mindfulness and 5-HT2AR correlated negatively (β [95%CI] = -5.0 [-9.0; -0.9], pFWER= 0.046). In conclusion, we confirm that psilocybin intake is associated with long-term increases in Openness and - as a novel finding - mindfulness, which may be a key element of psilocybin therapy. Cerebral 5-HT2AR binding did not change across individuals but the negative association between changes in 5-HT2AR binding and mindfulness suggests that individual change in 5-HT2AR levels after psilocybin is variable and represents a potential mechanism influencing long-term effects of psilocybin on mindfulness.