Psychedelic medicine: The biology underlying the persisting psychedelic effects.
Psychedelic substances have regained interest as therapeutic agents in the treatment of stress-related disorders. The effects seem to be of persisting nature even after a single dose. Also in lower than 'regular' recreational doses, so-called micro-doses, without the typical effects on consciousness, users report beneficial effects on cognitive processes and well-being. The exact neurobiological mechanism underlying these persisting effects is not clear. While previous research has mainly focused on the central nervous system including the immune system and the neuroendocrine system, I propose a central role for sleep and the microbiome in the effects of regular and low doses of psychedelics respectively. It will be explained why this is hypothesized and studies to test this idea proposed. It is concluded that while these studies are needed to understand the biology underlying psychedelic medicine, it is also important to approach it in a holistic way, including all the above mentioned biological processes psychedelics are known to affect, and explore the role of other substance-related factors like route of administration and form, and factors like diet and lifestyle which are part of the psychedelic experience.
['Kuypers|K P C|KPC|']
D000818:Animals D031581:Banisteriopsis D003071:Cognition D003243:Consciousness D003863:Depression D004032:Diet D006213:Hallucinogens D006801:Humans D008019:Life Style D008238:Lysergic Acid Diethylamide D064307:Microbiota D008954:Models, Biological D011562:Psilocybin D012890:Sleep
Psychedelic medicine Stress-related disorders Gut-brain axis Psilocybin Sleep microbiome