Psilocybin, the hallucinogenic compound found in "magic mushrooms," could treat depression by creating a hyper-connected brain.
By boosting connectivity between different areas of the brain, the psychedelic may help people with depression break out of rigid, negative patterns of thinking, a new study suggests.
Recent clinical trials have suggested that psilocybin may be an effective treatment for depression, when carefully administered under the supervision of mental health professionals. In the new study, published Monday (April 11) in the journal Nature Medicine, researchers probed exactly how the psychedelic works to improve peoples' depressive symptoms. To do so, the team collected brain scans from about 60 patients who had participated in clinical trials for psilocybin therapy; these brain scans revealed distinct changes in the patients' brain wiring that emerged after they took the drug.
"We see connectivity between various brain systems increasing dramatically," first author Richard Daws, who was a doctoral student at Imperial College London at the time of the study, told Live Science. Healthy individuals with high levels of well-being and cognitive function tend to have highly connected brains, studies suggest, but in people with depression, "we sort of see the opposite of that — a brain characterized by segregation," said Daws, now a postdoctoral research associate at King's College London. This sort of organization undermines the brain's ability to dynamically switch between different mental states and patterns of thinking, he said.
The study supports the idea that psilocybin relieves depressive symptoms, at least in part, by boosting connectivity between different brain networks, said Dr. Hewa Artin, the chief resident of outpatient psychiatry at the UC San Diego School of Medicine, who was not involved in the study. That said, "additional studies will be needed to replicate results and validate findings," Artin told Live Science in an email. READ MORE...
The study also collected functional magnetic resonance imaging and proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy data, providing some new insights into the underlying neurobiological mechanisms associated with creative ability.
“Creativity is an essential cognitive ability linked to all areas of our everyday life, allowing us to adapt to an ever-changing environment and come up with ways to solve problems,” said lead researcher Natasha Mason (@NL_Mason), a PhD candidate at Maastricht University.
“Importantly, as well as being an essential process for everyday functioning, the (in)ability to think ‘outside of the box’ has also been associated with psychological disorders, such as depression and anxiety. These individuals can get stuck in maladaptive thought patterns, which can facilitate habitual (negative) behaviors. Thus, finding a way to enhance creativity is of broad interest.”
Scientists had found some preliminary evidence in the 1960s that the psychedelic drug LSD could enhance creative problem-solving. There was also some evidence that the psychedelic state induced by LSD could harm creative ability. But the issue has received little scientific attention since then.
“Over the years, a number of anecdotal reports have accumulated suggesting that the consumption of psychedelic drugs, like LSD and psilocybin, can enhance creativity,” Mason said. “Famous examples of psychedelic-affiliated creative breakthroughs include Kary Mullis’ discovery of the polymerase chain reaction, the 1960’s California-based computer industry, and the literary works of authors, such as Aldous Huxley and Ken Kesey. That said, although there are a large number of claims that psychedelics do this, no one has investigated this in a placebo-controlled experimental trial.” READ MORE
