Behavioral Neuroscience
January 18, 2024
Zahra Ghofrani-Jahromi, Sarah Nouri-Darehno, Mehrsa Rahimi-Danesh et al.
22 citations
A single injection of Psilocybe cubensis extract (25 mg/kg) given to male rats shortly before or after fear conditioning reduced PTSD-like freezing behavior in the short term (1 and 3 days after conditioning) but not after 21 days. The extract also decreased locomotor activity only briefly after administration, while it raised pain thresholds and reduced anxiety for a longer period. These results suggest that the mushroom's effects on PTSD-like behavior and activity are short-lived, but its influence on pain sensitivity and anxiety may persist.
Journal of psychiatric research
October 1, 2024
Mohammad-Ali Samizadeh, Seyedeh-Tabassom Abdollahi-Keyvani, Hamed Fallah et al.
21 citations
In a rat model of schizophrenia induced by five daily injections of ketamine (30 mg/kg), recognition memory was impaired and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels in the prefrontal cortex decreased in both sexes. Ketamine also lowered pain threshold in females, increased rearing behavior in males, and caused greater hyperlocomotion in females. Subsequent treatment with risperidone (2 mg/kg) restored or attenuated all these behavioral effects and BDNF levels. The findings suggest sex differences in how ketamine affects pain perception, locomotion, and rearing behavior in this model.
Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's archives of pharmacology
February 20, 2025
Atefeh Motamedi-Manesh, Mahdieh Farzin Asanjan, Hamed Fallah et al.
6 citations
A systematic review of 17 rodent studies found that ketamine's effects on brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) depend on treatment duration, species, and sex. Sub-chronic and chronic ketamine treatment decreased BDNF or had no effect in rats, and decreased BDNF in mice. Acute ketamine treatment commonly increased BDNF. One study reported inconsistent BDNF changes between male and female rats. Due to high methodological variability, there is currently no standardized method for using ketamine as a rodent model of schizophrenia.
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
November 13, 2024
Reza Ghaffarzadegan, Mokhtar Karimi, Behnaz Hedayatjoo et al.
6 citations
Chronic unpredictable mild stress for four weeks impaired spatial learning and memory and reduced brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the hippocampus of rats. Injecting a Psilocybe cubensis extract (20 mg/kg) 24 or 48 hours before training restored spatial learning, and injection 48 hours before training also restored spatial memory. The extract given 24 or 48 hours before training increased hippocampal BDNF in stressed rats. However, when given at other times (5 minutes before training, 5 minutes after training, or 5 minutes before the probe test), the extract impaired spatial learning and memory and decreased BDNF in non-stressed control rats. The timing of administration appears critical for the extract's effects on memory and BDNF.
Behavioural pharmacology
April 1, 2025
Eghbal Jasemi, Ali Razmi, Salar Vaseghi et al.
5 citations
In mice, early maternal separation caused depressive-like and anxiety-like behaviors, reduced movement, and altered hippocampal gene expression and methylation of Slc6a4 and Nr3c1. A single injection of Psilocybe cubensis extract (20 mg/kg) on postnatal day 60 reversed these behavioral and molecular changes. The extract appears to influence serotonergic signaling and stress response pathways by modifying Slc6a4 and Nr3c1 expression and methylation. These findings suggest that compounds from Psilocybe cubensis may counteract some long-term effects of early-life stress.
Scientific Reports
August 23, 2025
Kalin Manooki, Mahdieh Gholami, Maryam Eslami et al.
3 citations
In rats, five days of ketamine injections induced schizophrenia-like behaviors—increased activity and climbing, reduced exploration, impaired object-recognition memory, and lowered BDNF in the prefrontal cortex. Females showed additional effects: lower pain threshold (hyperalgesia) and less immobility in the forced swim test (an antidepressant-like effect). A single dose of olanzapine after the last ketamine injection reversed most behavioral deficits in both sexes, including memory impairment, and normalized pain threshold and immobility in females. Olanzapine did not affect BDNF levels, suggesting its therapeutic actions in this model do not rely on BDNF upregulation in the prefrontal cortex.
Journal of Affective Disorders Reports
June 8, 2026
Marzieh Jalalian-Javadpour, Batool Ghorbani Yekta, Niloufar Reyhani et al.
Psilocybin, the active compound in magic mushrooms, shows potential for treating neuropsychiatric disorders including major depressive disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety disorders, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Evidence for OCD is very limited. This review examined 15 articles from 268 initial search results. All clinical studies—both case reports and clinical trials—reported improvement in OCD symptoms. Preclinical studies using OCD-like models were rare and showed some conflicting results. The review identifies shortcomings in assessing psilocybin's effects on OCD and calls for more detailed preclinical studies and clinical trials with dozens of participants.