Journal of Neurochemistry
February 28, 2025
Aneta Petrušková, Debarpan Guhathakurta, Enes Yağız Akdaş et al.
8 citations
Serotonergic psychedelics like psilocybin, LSD, and DMT rapidly alter how neurons communicate at synapses. Using live-cell imaging in rat cortical neurons, the drugs reduced the fraction of synaptic vesicles that fuse in response to electrical stimulation within minutes, an effect that faded within 24 hours. DMT only reduced the total recycling pool of vesicles, while LSD and psilocin also shrank the readily releasable pool. Psilocin and DMT increased evoked glutamate release, yet LSD and psilocin lowered presynaptic calcium levels. Psilocin further depressed responses to paired stimuli. These drug-specific modulations of glutamatergic transmission may help explain their distinct therapeutic properties.
Neurobiology of disease
March 1, 2025
Liubov S Kalinichenko, Iulia Zoicas, Anne-Marie Bienia et al.
4 citations
Overexpression of acid sphingomyelinase (ASM) in the forebrain affects addiction-related behaviors differently in male and female mice. In males, forebrain ASM overexpression increased alcohol consumption in a free-choice paradigm and reduced conditioned place preference (CPP) for alcohol and cocaine, but not for amphetamine, ketamine, or high-fat/carbohydrate food. In females, it increased binge-like alcohol drinking while moderate consumption remained unchanged, and enhanced CPP for amphetamine but not other substances. These findings suggest ASM plays a sex-specific role in the reinforcing effects of certain addictive substances, offering potential molecular targets for drug- and sex-specific therapies.
IBRO Neuroscience Reports
October 1, 2023
Aneta Petrušková, Eva‐maria Weiss, Debarpan Guhathakurta et al.
Serotonergic psychedelics like psilocybin, LSD, and DMT may offer new treatments for depression, PTSD, and addiction, but better understanding of their cellular and molecular mechanisms is needed. Imaging studies in humans and animal studies have shown acute changes in neuronal activity and connectivity, though findings are sometimes contradictory.