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How psychedelic drugs achieve their potent health benefits

Mouse studies suggest that drugs from LSD to ecstasy renew the brain’s flexibility — but some scientists are sceptical.
By
  1. Sara Reardon

    1. Sara Reardon is a freelance journalist based in Bozeman, Montana.

Psychedelic drugs are promising treatments for many mental-health conditions, but researchers don’t fully understand why they have such powerful therapeutic effects. Now, a study in mice suggests that psychedelics all work in the same way: they reset the brain to a youthful state in which it can easily absorb new information and form crucial connections between neurons1.

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Nature 618, 654-655 (2023)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-01920-2

Read the related News & Views: ‘Timing is key for behavioural benefits of psychedelics’

References

  1. Nardou, R. et al. Nature https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06204-3 (2023).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Goodwin, G. M. et al. N. Engl. J. Med. 387, 1637–1648 (2022).

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Nardou, R. et al. Nature 569, 116–120 (2019).

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

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