Frontiers in Psychiatry
November 20, 2017
Laura Orsolini, Gabriele Duccio Papanti, Domenico de Berardis et al.
99 citations
Hallucinogen-persisting perception disorder (HPPD) is a syndrome of prolonged or recurring perceptual symptoms resembling acute hallucinogen effects. It has been linked to LSD, cannabis, MDMA, psilocybin, mescaline, and psychostimulants, and more recently to novel psychoactive substances. Symptoms are mainly visual, including geometric pseudo-hallucinations, haloes, flashes of light, motion-perception deficits, afterimages, and micropsia, though depressive and thought disorders may co-occur. First described in 1954, HPPD was formally recognized as a syndrome in the DSM-IV-TR in 2000. Its neural substrates, risk factors, and causes remain largely unknown. This mini review surveys psychopathological bases, etiological hypotheses, and psychopharmacological approaches, including associations with novel substances, based on a literature search of PubMed/Medline, Google Scholar, and Scopus without time restrictions.
Cyberpsychology, behavior and social networking
May 1, 2015
Laura Orsolini, Gabriele Duccio Papanti, Giulia Francesconi et al.
90 citations
Within online drug forums, some highly knowledgeable users—termed 'e-psychonauts'—provide reliable information on psychoactive substances. A netnographic study observed cyber drug communities in early 2014, analyzing posts with phenomenological methods. E-psychonauts typically described themselves as 'psychedelic researchers,' 'new Shamans,' 'philosophers,' or 'alchemists.' They were mainly young, male, unmarried, Caucasian, and in good or excellent employment. They possessed strong IT skills, verbal fluency, and deep chemical/pharmacological knowledge, often testing or synthesizing drugs to explore altered consciousness. The findings suggest a need to improve professional awareness of this group and develop targeted prevention approaches.
Expert Review of Clinical Pharmacology
March 17, 2016
Fabrizio Schifano, Gabriele Duccio Papanti, Laura Orsolini et al.
66 citations
Novel psychoactive substances (NPS), including stimulants and hallucinogens, disrupt multiple neurotransmitter pathways, particularly dopamine, cannabinoid CB1, and 5-HT2A receptors. Their intake is almost never detected by standard drug screening tests. Acute management of NPS misusers should prioritize reducing self-directed and outward-directed aggression and agitation. Benzodiazepines are recommended as first-line treatment, with propofol or antipsychotics as alternatives. Treatment must also address possible rhabdomyolysis and hyperthermia. Future research is needed to develop better-tailored management strategies.
Archiv der Pharmazie
March 1, 2025
Giuseppe Floresta, Alberto Granzotto, Vincenzo Patamia et al.
12 citations
Xylazine, a veterinary sedative now used recreationally with fentanyl, interacts with human serotonin 7 (5-HT7R) and kappa-opioid (KOR) receptors. Computational docking and molecular dynamics simulations identified binding motifs and showed that small structural changes can improve xylazine's affinity for these receptors. These findings may help explain xylazine's psychoactive effects and guide treatments for overdoses.