Intravenous Administration of Serotonergic Psychedelics Produce Short-lasting Changes in Sleep-Wake Behavior and High Gamma Functional Connectivity in Rats
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) October 14, 2025 Nicholas Kolbman, Amanda Nelson, Rachel Summerfield et al. 1 citation preprint
Psilocybin and DMT, two serotonergic psychedelics, delay the onset of slow-wave sleep and REM sleep, and cause a short-lasting increase in wakefulness and decrease in slow-wave sleep in rats. Psilocybin also reduces REM sleep, decreases theta power and coherence, and increases high gamma power and coherence during wake and slow-wave sleep, as well as increasing high gamma coherence during REM sleep. DMT increases gamma coherence only during wakefulness. The enhanced high gamma functional connectivity suggests that psychedelic-induced changes in neural dynamics can occur independently of arousal states.