Blood Flow and Cerebral Laterality in the Mescaline Model of Psychosis
Pharmacopsychiatry – July 01, 1998
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
Mescaline significantly alters brain function, as shown in a study with 12 male volunteers. After 3.5 to 4 hours post-consumption, participants exhibited acute psychotomimetic effects, evidenced by changes on the BPRS and PDS-P scales. Notably, a face/non-face decision task highlighted decreased right hemisphere functioning, while SPECT imaging revealed a "hyperfrontal" pattern linked to these psychotic symptoms. This challenges the traditional view of hypofrontality in understanding acute psychosis, suggesting that mescaline's impact on the brain is more complex than previously thought.
Abstract
The psychological, neuropsychological, and neurometabolic effects of the hallucinogenic agent mescaline were investigated in 12 normal male volunteers. Between 3 1/2 and 4 hours after drug intake, mescaline produced an acute psychotomimetic state, as measured by the BPRS and PDS-P. The APZ questionnaire revealed the specific effects of mescaline in the visual system. Neuropsychological effects were studied with a face/non-face decision task with known right hemisphere advantage, in which mescaline induced a decrease in functioning of the right hemisphere. In functional brain imaging using SPECT, mescaline produced a "hyperfrontal" pattern with an emphasis on the right hemisphere, which was correlated with mescaline-induced psychotomimetic psychopathology. Our findings question the validity of the concept of hypofrontality as an explanation for acute psychotic symptomatology.