Humanistic Psychology, Psychedelics, and the Transpersonal Vision
Grob, C. S., & Bossis, A. (2017). Humanistic Psychology, Psychedelics, and the Transpersonal Vision. 10.1177/0022167817715960
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Grob, C. S., & Bossis, A. (2017). Humanistic Psychology, Psychedelics, and the Transpersonal Vision. 10.1177/0022167817715960
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This research was aimed to evaluate the in vitro antiviral effect and the mechanism of the effect of Peganum. harmala seeds extract against influenza A virus infection using Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells. In this research, ethyl alcohol extract of P. harmala seeds and its total alkaloids was prepared. The potential antiviral activity of the extract and its total alkaloids against influenza A/Puerto Rico/8/34 (H1N1; PR8) virus was assessed. The mode of action of the extract to inhibit influenza replication was investigated using virucidal activity, hemagglutination inhibition assay, time of addition assays, RNA replication, western blot analysis and RNA polymerase blocking assay. The crud extract of P. harmala seed and its total alkaloids showed the best inhibitory effect against influenza A virus replication in MDCK cells using MTT assay, TCID50 method and hemagglutination assay. Our results indicated that the extract inhibits viral RNA replication and viral polymerase activity but did not effect on hemagglutination inhibition and virucidal activity. This study showed that, in vitro antiviral activity of P. harmala seed extract against influenza virus is most probably associated with inhibiting viral RNA transcription. Therefore, this extract and its total alkaloid should be further characterized to be developed as anti-influenza A virus agent.
Moradi, M. T., Karimi, A., Rafieian-Kopaei, M., & Fotouhi, F. (2017). In vitro antiviral effects of Peganum harmala seed extract and its total alkaloids against Influenza virus. Microbial Pathogenesis. 10.1016/j.micpath.2017.06.014
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Impaired empathic abilities lead to severe negative social consequences and influence the development and treatment of several psychiatric disorders. Furthermore, empathy has been shown to play a crucial role in moral and prosocial behaviour. Although the serotonin (5-HT) system has been implicated in modulating empathy and moral behaviour, the relative contribution of the various 5-HT receptor subtypes is still unknown.
We investigated the acute effect of psilocybin (0.215mg/kg p.o.) in healthy human subjects on different facets of empathy and hypothetical moral decision-making using the Multifaceted Empathy Test (MET) (n=32) and the Moral Dilemma Task (MDT) (n=24).
Psilocybin significantly increased emotional, but not cognitive empathy compared to placebo, and the increase in implicit emotional empathy was significantly associated with psilocybin-induced changed meaning of percepts. In contrast, moral decision-making remained unaffected by psilocybin.
These findings provide first evidence that psilocybin has distinct effects on social cognition by enhancing emotional empathy but not moral behaviour. Furthermore, together with previous findings psilocybin appears to promote emotional empathy presumably via activation of 5-HT2A/1A receptors suggesting that targeting 5-HT2A/1A receptors has implications for potential treatment of dysfunctional social cognition.
Pokorny, T., Preller, K. H., Kometer, M., Dziobek, I., & Vollenweider, F. X. (2017). Effect of psilocybin on empathy and moral decision-making. International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology. 10.1093/ijnp/pyx047
Depression is a world-wide disease with no effective therapeutic methods. Increasing evidence indicates that astrocytic pathology contributes to the formation of depression. In this study, we investigated the effects of harmine, a natural β-carboline alkaloid and potent hallucinogen, known to modulate astrocytic glutamate transporters, on chronic unpredictable stress (CUS)-induced depressive-like behaviors and astrocytic dysfunctions. Results showed that harmine treatment (10, 20 mg/kg) protected the mice against the CUS-induced increases in the immobile time in the tail suspension test (TST) and forced swimming test (FST), and also reversed the reduction in sucrose intake in the sucrose preference experiment. Harmine treatment (20 mg/kg) prevented the reductions in brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) protein levels and hippocampal neurogenesis induced by CUS. In addition, harmine treatment (20 mg/kg) increased the protein expression levels of glutamate transporter 1 (GLT-1) and prevented the CUS-induced decreases in glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) protein expressions in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus, suggesting that restoration of astrocytic functions may be a potential mechanism underlying the antidepressant-like effects of harmine. This opinion was proved by the results that administration of mice with l-Alpha-Aminoadipic Acid (L-AAA), a gliotoxin specific for astrocytes, attenuated the antidepressant-like effects of harmine, and prevented the improvement effects of harmine on BDNF protein levels and hippocampal neurogenesis. These results provide further evidence to confirm that astrocytic dysfunction contributes critically to the development of depression and that harmine exerts antidepressant-like effects likely through restoration of astrocytic functions.
Liu, F., Wu, J., Gong, Y., Wang, P., Zhu, L., Tong, L. J., … & Huang, C. (2017). Harmine produces antidepressant-like effects via restoration of astrocytic functions. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry. 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2017.06.012
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Objectives
Classic hallucinogens (e.g. psilocybin and LSD) have substantial effects on perception, cognition, and emotion that can often be psychologically challenging, however we know very little regarding the source of significant individual variability that has been observed in the frequency and intensity of challenging experiences (i.e. “bad trips”) with psychedelics. Previous clinical and observational literature suggests that there may be an association between neuroticism and challenging psychedelic experiences.
Methods
Data from two online surveys of challenging experiences with psilocybin were analyzed. Multivariate analysis was used to estimate the associations between total score and scores from seven sub-factors (fear, grief, physical distress, insanity, isolation, death, and paranoia) of the Challenging Experience Questionnaire (CEQ), and scale scores from the Ten Item Personality Inventory (TIPI) in Study 1 (N = 1993) and the Big Five Inventory (BFI) in Study 2 (N = 981).
Results
CEQ scores were negatively associated with emotional stability scores (the inverse of neuroticism) in Study 1 and positively associated with neuroticism scores in Study 2.
Conclusions
Neuroticism may contribute to the strength of challenging experiences with psychedelics in uncontrolled settings.
Barrett, F. S., Johnson, M. W., & Griffiths, R. R. (2017). Neuroticism is associated with challenging experiences with psilocybin mushrooms. Personality and Individual Differences, 117, 155-160. 10.1016/j.paid.2017.06.004
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Ayahuasca is a beverage obtained from decoctions of the Banisteriopsis caapi plus Psychotria viridis. In religious contexts, ayahuasca is used by different age groups. However, little is known of the effects of ayahuasca during ontogenic development, particularly with regard to the functional characteristics of the central nervous system. Animal models are useful for studying the ontogenic effects of ayahuasca because they allow exclusion of the behavioral influence associated with the ritualistic use. We investigated the effects of exposure to ayahuasca (1.5 mL/kg, orally, twice a week) on memory and anxiety in C57BL/6 mice, with the post-natal day (PND) being used as the ontogenic criterion for classification: childhood (PND21 to PND35), adolescence (PND35 to PND63), adulthood (PND90-PND118), childhood-adolescence (PND21 to PND63), childhood-adulthood (PND21 to PND118) and adolescence-adulthood (PND35 to PND118). One day after the last ayahuasca exposure, the mice were subjected to the Morris water maze (MWM), open field and elevated plus maze tasks (EPM). Ayahuasca did not affect locomotion in the open field or open arms exploration in the EPM, but increased the risk assessment behavior in the childhood group. Ayahuasca did not cause any change in acquisition of spatial reference memory in the MWM task, but decreased the time spent on the platform quadrant during the test session in the adolescence group. These results suggest that, in mice, exposure to ayahuasca in childhood and adolescence promoted anxiety and memory impairment, respectively. However, these behavioral changes were not long-lasting since they were not observed in the childhood-adulthood and adolescence-adulthood groups.
Correa-Netto, N. F., Masukawa, M. Y., Nishide, F., Galfano, G. S., Tamura, F., Shimizo, M. K., … & Linardi, A. (2017). An ontogenic study of the behavioral effects of chronic intermittent exposure to ayahuasca in mice. Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research, 50(7). 10.1590/1414-431×20176036
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The Quechua term ayahuasca refers to a beverage obtained from decoctions of the liana Banisteriopsis caapi with leaves of Psychotria viridis. The ritualistic use of ayahuasca is becoming a global phenomenon, with some individuals using this beverage throughout life, including in old age. Cognitive impairment is a common manifestation during aging. There are conflicting reports on the ability of some ayahuasca compounds to exert neuroprotective or neurotoxic effects that could improve or impair learning and memory. Animal models provide a relevant and accessible means of investigating the behavioral effects of ayahuasca without the environmental conditions associated with the ritualistic use of the beverage. In this study, we investigated the influence of chronic ayahuasca exposure throughout aging on the spatial reference and habituation memories of mice. Twenty-eight male c57bl/6 mice (6 months old) received ayahuasca or water (1.5 mL/kg, orally) twice a week for 12 months and were tested in the Morris water maze (MWM), open field and elevated plus maze (EPM) tasks before and after treatment. During aging, there was significant impairment in the evocation (but not acquisition) of spatial reference memory and in habituation to the open field. There was also a decrease in locomotor activity in the open field and EPM tests, whereas the anxiety parameters were unaltered. Ayahuasca treatment did not alter any of these parameters associated with aging. These findings indicate that chronic exposure to ayahuasca during aging did not affect memory in mice.
Correa-Netto, N. F., Coelho, L. S., Galfano, G. S., Nishide, F., Tamura, F., Shimizu, M. K., … & Linardi, A. (2017). Chronic intermittent exposure to ayahuasca during aging does not affect memory in mice. Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research, 50(7). 10.1590/1414-431×20176037
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