Physiology & Behavior
May 20, 2025
Kaspar McCoy, Felicia Reed, Kyna‐anne Conn et al.
4 citations
Psilocybin, a serotonergic psychedelic, shows promise for treating anorexia nervosa by enhancing cognitive flexibility and modifying reward processing—two core processes disrupted in the disorder. Its effects are primarily mediated by the 5-HT2A receptor, but recent evidence indicates broader interactions with dopaminergic pathways in brain regions like the prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens. Rodent models demonstrate that psilocybin induces rapid and enduring neuroplastic changes, improving cognitive flexibility through complex neurochemical mechanisms. Advances in real-time neurochemical recording now allow simultaneous monitoring of serotonin and dopamine signaling, which will provide insights into their coordinated actions during cognitive performance. Further research into psilocybin's dual modulation of these systems is needed to optimize therapeutic applications for anorexia nervosa.
Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology
May 25, 2026
Sheida Shadani, Kaspar McCoy, Lina Ong et al.
A single dose of psilocybin (1.5 mg/kg) in C57BL/6 J mice produces sex-specific effects on social behavior and dopamine signaling. In females, psilocybin acutely increased huddling and induced hypothermia, and post-acutely enhanced novelty-seeking and grooming, with no comparable effects in males. By 24 hours, males showed reduced grooming and rearing but increased sociability toward a cage-mate, accompanied by blunted novelty-evoked nucleus accumbens dopamine responses lasting up to 7 days. At 7 days, females shifted social preference toward familiarity, associated with prolonged dopamine release during familiar interactions, while males increased grooming. Both 5-HT1A and 5-HT2A receptors contributed to these sex-specific behavioral effects.
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
December 22, 2025
Sheida Shadani, Kaspar McCoy, Lina Ong et al.
A single dose of psilocybin (1.5 mg/kg) alters social behaviors in C57BL/6J mice in sex-specific ways. In females, psilocybin acutely triggers huddling linked to body temperature changes, enhances preference for social novelty 4 hours after administration lasting about 24 hours, but reverses to a preference for familiar over novel conspecifics 7 days later, associated with prolonged nucleus accumbens dopamine signaling during familiar sniffing. In males, psilocybin reduces stress-related behaviors at 24 hours and increases preference for familiar conspecifics, with blunted novelty-evoked dopamine responses at both 24 hours and 7 days. Both 5-HT1A and 5-HT2A receptors modulate these behaviors in sex-specific ways. The prosocial effects of psychedelics are not universal, emphasizing the need for sex-informed approaches.