Psychopharmacology
July 24, 2017
Matthew B. Young, Seth D. Norrholm, Lara M. Khoury et al.
103 citations
MDMA enhances the extinction of fear memories in a translational behavioral model, an effect that depends on the serotonin transporter (5-HTT) and the 5-HT2A receptor. These findings support the potential use of MDMA as an adjunct to exposure therapy for fear-related disorders and highlight important pharmacological considerations for patients who are often treated with serotonin reuptake inhibitors.
Journal of Psychopharmacology
February 15, 2022
Jessica L. Maples‐keller, Seth D. Norrholm, Mark Burton et al.
53 citations
A randomized placebo-controlled trial tested whether MDMA enhances fear extinction retention in healthy adults. Participants underwent fear conditioning, then received 100 mg MDMA or placebo before extinction training. Fear retention was tested 48 hours later. MDMA was well-tolerated with no serious adverse events. While the overall analysis showed no significant group difference in extinction retention between training and test sessions, a significantly larger proportion of the MDMA group retained extinction learning compared to the placebo group. The results provide a rationale for further research into MDMA's potential effects on fear extinction.
Journal of Psychopharmacology
July 31, 2024
Roman Palitsky, Deanna M. Kaplan, John Perna et al.
32 citations
A multidisciplinary working group identified 54 potential adverse events that warrant systematic assessment in psychedelic-assisted therapies, finding that existing measurement tools substantially fail to cover these constructs. The group developed recommendations for when and how to assess these adverse events across preparation, dosing, integration, and follow-up phases, and demonstrated a preliminary assessment protocol. The framework addresses the need to capture post-acute dosing adverse events, accounting for both the pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy components of psychedelic-assisted therapy, as well as documented impacts on worldviews and spirituality.
PLoS ONE
January 2, 2024
Caroline Peacock, Erin Brauer, Ali John Zarrabi et al.
27 citations
Spiritual health practitioners bring unique expertise to psychedelic-assisted therapy based on their training and professional experience. Interviews with 15 such practitioners revealed seven themes in two domains: unique contributions (competency with spiritual material, awareness of power dynamics, familiarity with non-ordinary states, holding space, counterbalancing biomedical perspectives) and general contributions (using general therapeutic skills and supporting interdisciplinary collaboration). Their skills complement other clinical team members, and psychedelic-assisted therapy teams may benefit from including them. Further work is needed to define roles, qualifications, and training for these clinicians.
Psychopharmacology
August 22, 2023
Robert F. Dougherty, Patrick Clarke, Merve Atli et al.
21 citations
A machine learning model that analyzes language from therapy sessions can predict which patients with treatment-resistant depression will respond to psilocybin therapy. Researchers used a zero-shot classifier based on the BART large language model to measure sentiment (valence and arousal) in transcripts of therapist-patient conversations one day after COMP360 psilocybin administration. These sentiment scores, combined with the Emotional Breakthrough Index and treatment arm, were fed into multinomial logistic regression models. The models predicted responder status at week 3 and through week 12 with 85% and 88% accuracy, respectively, and AUC values of 88% and 85%. This approach could enable early identification of patients needing alternative treatments.
BMC Psychiatry
February 28, 2025
John Perna, Justin Trop, Roman Palitsky et al.
15 citations
A case report describes tensions between legal and underground psychedelic use within therapy training programs, psychiatry, and neo-shamanism. It details how psychiatric interventions like electroconvulsive therapy and energy medicine were used to address prolonged adverse effects from psychedelics. The report urges clinicians to recognize conflicts between psychiatric views of these adverse effects and frameworks in psychedelic communities, which can affect patients' symptoms, decisions, and emotional struggles.
March 5, 2024
Roman Palitsky, Deanna M. Kaplan, John Perna et al.
4 citations
preprint
A multidisciplinary working group identified 53 potential adverse events (AEs) specific to psychedelic-assisted therapies (PATs) that current assessment tools miss. Existing measures cover only a fraction of these constructs. The group recommends new assessment methods—including patient, clinician, and informant reports—and specifies when to measure AEs across preparation, dosing, integration, and follow-up phases. The framework addresses gaps in capturing post-acute dosing effects, including changes in worldview and spirituality, which distinguish PAT from other treatments.
September 30, 2022
Robert F. Dougherty, Patrick Clarke, Merve Alti et al.
3 citations
preprint
A machine learning model that analyzes language from therapy sessions accurately predicted which patients with treatment-resistant depression would respond to psilocybin treatment. Transcripts of psychological support sessions held one day after COMP360 (a synthetic psilocybin formulation) administration were analyzed using a zero-shot classifier based on the BART large language model to measure sentiment (valence and arousal) for both participant and therapist. These scores, combined with the Emotional Breakthrough Index and treatment arm, were used to predict treatment outcome measured by MADRS scores. Two multinomial logistic regression models predicted responder status at week 3 and through week 12 with 85% and 88% accuracy, and AUC values of 88% and 85%, respectively. The approach enables rapid prognostication of personalized response to psilocybin treatment and insights into therapeutic model optimization.
Psychedelics.
December 17, 2024
Zachary Bosshardt, Jessica L. Maples‐keller, Deanna M. Kaplan et al.
Attendees at a conference on psychedelics and spiritual care generally agreed that microdosing may have benefits and expressed modest concern about potential harm from therapeutic psychedelic use. Among 178 survey respondents, 40.2% agreed or strongly agreed that psychedelics could be harmful therapeutically, while 30.7% were unsure. A subset of 32 psychedelic care facilitators reported using psychedelics to treat a wide range of diagnoses with diverse psychotherapy approaches and endorsed a need for cultural adaptations in psychedelic treatments.