This data-analytic study compared the similarity between several different psychedelic compounds, in terms of their reported subjective effects, binding affinity profiles, and molecular structures. Through the application of a novel machine-learning algorithm to the experience reports sampled from Erowid, the authors found that differences in subjective experience could be predicted by target binding site affinity and/or their conformational receptor states of the respective molecules. Notabely, the 5-HT receptor subtypes yielded relatively poor predictions by themself in contrast to dopamine receptors (D1-5), which highlights that the dopaminergic action of LSD (in contrast to psilocybin) may elicit different types of subjective experiences.
- Published
- Journal
- Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience
- Authors
- Zamberlan, F., Sanz, C., Pallavicini, C., Erowid, E., Erowid, F., Tagliazucchi, E.