In a placebo-controlled, within-subject neuroimaging study of 28 psychedelic‑naive participants, a single high (25 mg) dose of psilocybin produced lasting functional and anatomical brain changes from 1 hour to 1 month and improved cognitive flexibility, psychological insight and well‑being at one month. Diffusion MRI showed decreased axial diffusivity in prefrontal–subcortical tracts that correlated with reduced brain network modularity (which correlated with improved well‑being), acute increases in cortical signal entropy predicted one‑month well‑being via next‑day psychological insight, and none of these effects were seen with a 1 mg control dose.
- Published
- Journal
- Biorxiv
- Authors
- Lyons, T., Spriggs, M. J., Kerkelä, L., Rosas, F. E., Roseman, L., Mediano, P. A. M., Timmermann, C., Oestreich, L., Pagni, B. A., Zeifman, R. J., Hampshire, A. D. G., Trender, W., Douglass, H., Girn, M., Godfrey, K., Kettner, H., Sharif, F., Espasiano, L., Gazzaley, A., Wall, M. B., Erritzoe, D., Nutt, D. J., Carhart-Harris, R. L.