Dataset Information

Moderators of ayahuasca's biological antidepressant action.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

The understanding of biological responses to psychedelics with antidepressant potential is imperative. Here we report how a set of acute parameters, namely emotional (depressive symptoms), cognitive (psychedelic experience), and physiological (salivary cortisol), recorded during an ayahuasca dosing session, modulated serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), serum cortisol (SC), serum interleukin 6 (IL-6), plasma C-reactive protein (CRP), and salivary cortisol awakening response (CAR).

Methods

Results were analyzed 2 days after the psychedelic intervention (ayahuasca) versus placebo in both patients with treatment-resistant depression and healthy volunteers. These measures were assessed as part of a randomized double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial (n = 72).

Results

Results revealed that larger reductions of depressive symptoms during the dosing session significantly moderated higher levels of SC in patients. Whereas lesser changes in salivary cortisol levels during the ayahuasca intervention were related to higher BDNF levels in patients with a larger clinical response in the reduction in depressive symptoms. No moderator was found for patient's CAR, IL-6, and CRP responses to ayahuasca and for all biomarker responses to ayahuasca in healthy controls and in the placebo group.

Discussion

In summary, some specific emotional and physiological parameters during experimental ayahuasca session were revealed as critical moderators of the improvement of major depression biomarkers, mainly BDNF and SC two days after ayahuasca intake. These findings contribute to paving the way for future studies investigating the biological antidepressant response to psychedelic therapy.

SUBMITTER: de Sousa GM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9760741 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Moderators of ayahuasca's biological antidepressant action.

de Sousa Geovan Menezes GM de Oliveira Tavares Vagner Deuel VD de Menezes Galvão Ana Cecília AC de Almeida Raíssa Nóbrega RN Palhano-Fontes Fernanda F Lobão-Soares Bruno B de Morais Freire Fúlvio Aurélio FA Nunes Emerson Arcoverde EA Maia-de-Oliveira João Paulo JP Perkins Daniel D Sarris Jerome J de Araujo Dráulio Barros DB Galvão-Coelho Nicole Leite NL

Frontiers in psychiatry 20221205

<h4>Introduction</h4>The understanding of biological responses to psychedelics with antidepressant potential is imperative. Here we report how a set of acute parameters, namely emotional (depressive symptoms), cognitive (psychedelic experience), and physiological (salivary cortisol), recorded during an ayahuasca dosing session, modulated serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), serum cortisol (SC), serum interleukin 6 (IL-6), plasma C-reactive protein (CRP), and salivary cortisol awakenin ...[more]

PMID: 36545037

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Dataset Information

Moderators of ayahuasca's biological antidepressant action.

Introduction

Methods

Results

Discussion

Publications

Moderators of ayahuasca's biological antidepressant action.

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