The psychedelic psilocybin and light exposure have similar and synergistic effects on gene expression patterns in the visual cortex.

ABSTRACT: Psilocybin, a psychedelic compound found in specific hallucinogenic mushrooms, is known to induce changes in visual perception and experience in humans. However, there is little knowledge of the molecular mechanisms through which psilocybin affects vision-associated regions in the brain, such as the visual cortex. The current study determined both psilocybin-induced and experience-dependent changes (exposure to light) in visual cortex gene expression in mice. Of great interest, psilocybin induced robust gene expression changes in the visual cortex that closely mirror light-induced gene expression changes, even when the mice are kept in the dark. These gene expression changes correspond to specific molecular pathways, including synaptic functioning, and represent genes expressed in specific

SUBMITTER: Harari R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11921621 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature