Psilocybin targets brain circuits to relieve chronic pain, depression
Penn Medicine researchers offer new insights into psilocybin’s ability to break the pain-depression cycle.
2 min. read
Researchers at Penn Medicine have identified specific brain circuits that are impacted by psilocybin—the active compound found in some psychedelic mushrooms—which could lead to new paths forward for pain and mental health management options. Chronic pain affects more than 1.5 billion people worldwide and is often deeply entangled with depression and anxiety, creating a vicious cycle that amplifies suffering and impairs quality of life. The study from the Perelman School of Medicine—published in Nature Neuroscience—offers new insight into ways to disrupt this cycle.
“As an anesthesiologist, I frequently care for people undergoing surgery who suffer from both chronic pain and depression. In many cases, they’re not sure which condition came first, but often, one makes the other worse,” says Joseph Cichon, an assistant professor of anesthesiology and critical care at Penn and senior author of the study. “This new study offers hope. These findings open the door to developing new, non-opioid, non-addictive therapies, as psilocybin and related psychedelics are not considered addictive.”
By administering a single dose of psilocybin, the researchers found both pain and pain-induced anxiety and depression-like behaviors were reduced, with those benefits lasting almost two weeks. Psilocybin acts by gently activating specific brain signals, called serotonin receptors (5-HT2A and 5-HT1A). “Unlike other drugs that fully turn these signals on or off, psilocybin acts more like a dimmer switch, turning it to just the right level,” says Cichon.
Researchers believe the findings from this study could also inform therapies for other conditions involving dysregulated brain circuits, such as addiction or post-traumatic stress disorder.
Griffin Pitt, right, works with two other student researchers to test the conductivity, total dissolved solids, salinity, and temperature of water below a sand dam in Kenya.
Griffin Pitt’s upbringing made her passionate about water access and pollution, and Penn has given her the opportunity to explore these issues back home in North Carolina and abroad.
Rashi Sabherwal, a doctoral student in political science, explores how women engage politically in society in informal roles through her research in India.
Helping robots work together to explore the Moon and Mars
Penn Engineers, NASA, and five other universities tested robotic systems designed to help unmanned explorers cooperate in the dunes of White Sands, New Mexico, paving the way for Moon and Mars exploration.
