PsychLight, a newly developed genetically encoded fluorescent sensor, helped researchers identify a psychedelic compound that acts on beneficial neural pathways to treat psychiatric disorders without the hallucinogenic effect. Read More
Mouse study reveals elevated dopamine levels preceded hallucination-like events, and artificially boosting dopamine levels induced more hallucination-like events. The behavioral effects could be blocked by administering haloperidol, an antipsychotic which blocks dopamine. The study sheds light on potential new treatments for psychotic disorders marked by hallucinations. Read More
Loneliness, stress, and social isolation as a result of COVID-19 exacerbated and intensified visual hallucinations in blind people with Charles Bonnet Syndrome by 56%. Read More
Inducing hallucinations using visual stimuli in a lab setting enables more objective and reliable testing. Read More
Hallucinations and delusions share a common neurobiological mechanism while simultaneously depending on symptom-specific pathways. Read More
8% of patients with a history of seizures reported experiencing hallucinations. Of the 8%, 53% reported one or more suicide attempts. Findings suggest hallucinations associated with seizures are not just incidental but are a marker for mental health risks and suicidal behavior. Read More
A new study reports hyper-connectivity between substructures of the thalamus, and the cerebral cortex may be responsible for auditory hallucinations associated with schizophrenia. Read More
The strength of a person's mental imagery is associated with excitability in the prefrontal cortex and visual cortex. Highly excitable neurons in the visual cortex may reduce a person's ability to imagine mental images. The findings shed light on how aphantasia, a condition where a person can not imaging mental images, may occur. Read More
Study warns of the potentially serious adverse effects of prescribing hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin for the treatment of COVID-19. Some of the potential side effects include cardiac arrhythmias, hypoglycemia, and neuropsychiatric effects. Read More
DMT alters electrical activity in the brain. The compound significantly decreases alpha wave activity, the dominant rhythm associated with wakefulness, and increases theta waves, associated with dreaming. Overall brain activity becomes more chaotic and less predictable. The findings advance the understanding of the neurobiological underpinnings of immersive states of consciousness. Read More
Mindful meditation enhances the positive effects of a single dose of psilocybin by increasing empathy and reducing egocentricity. Read More
35% of patients who used ketamine to manage pain reported significant side effects ranging from hallucination, out-of-body experiences, visual disturbances, and urinary dysfunction. 20% of the side effects were linked directly to ketamine, and 15% associated with ketamine in combination with other drugs. Read More
