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Oliver Howes

King's College London

2 papers in the library · 39 citations · publishing 2020-2023

Papers

The acute effects of cannabidiol on the neural correlates of reward anticipation and feedback in healthy volunteers

Journal of Psychopharmacology August 5, 2020 Will Lawn, J. P. Hill, Chandni Hindocha et al. 23 citations

A single 600 mg oral dose of cannabidiol did not alter brain activity related to anticipating or receiving rewards in healthy adults. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging during a monetary incentive delay task, the expected reward-related brain regions—including the insula, caudate, nucleus accumbens, anterior cingulate, and orbitofrontal cortex—were activated, but no difference was observed between cannabidiol and placebo. Bayesian analyses confirmed that activity in these regions was similar under both conditions, and behavioral measures of motivation for reward also showed no significant difference. The findings suggest that acute cannabidiol does not affect the neural correlates of reward anticipation or feedback in healthy individuals.

The drug treatment deadlock in psychiatry and the route forward

World Psychiatry January 14, 2023 Oliver Howes, Luke Baxter 16 citations

Between 2011 and 2021, the FDA approved only 12 new drugs in psychiatry, compared to 50 in neurology and 135 in oncology, highlighting a deadlock in psychiatric drug development. Challenges include high placebo response rates in clinical trials, which necessitate large, expensive, multi-site studies that may worsen the problem, and the withdrawal of major pharmaceutical companies from the field. Most drugs in development target existing mechanisms rather than novel ones. Potential solutions include using fewer, higher-quality trial sites, digital technologies for standardization, and smart trial designs. Attracting new companies requires sustained investment in translational research, government and charitable funding, pre-competitive partnerships, and incentives like tax breaks. Advancing understanding of neurobiology and developing biomarkers are essential for creating mechanistically distinct treatments.