The pharmacology of lysergic acid diethylamide: a review
This paper (2008) extensively reviews the pharmacology and psychopharmacology of LSD.
Authors
- Thomas Passie
- James Halpern
Published
Abstract
Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) was synthesized in 1938 and its psychoactive effects discovered in 1943. It was used during the 1950s and 1960s as an experimental drug in psychiatric research for producing so-called “experimental psychosis” by altering neurotransmitter system and in psychotherapeutic procedures (“psycholytic” and “psychedelic” therapy). From the mid 1960s, it became an illegal drug of abuse with widespread use that continues today. With the entry of new methods of research and better study oversight, scientific interest in LSD has resumed for brain research and experimental treatments. Due to the lack of any comprehensive review since the 1950s and the widely dispersed experimental literature, the present review focuses on all aspects of the pharmacology and psychopharmacology of LSD. A thorough search of the experimental literature regarding the pharmacology of LSD was performed and the extracted results are given in this review. (Psycho-) pharmacological research on LSD was extensive and produced nearly 10,000 scientific papers. The pharmacology of LSD is complex and its mechanisms of action are still not completely understood. LSD is physiologically well tolerated and psychological reactions can be controlled in a medically supervised setting, but complications may easily result from uncontrolled use by layman. Actually there is new interest in LSD as an experimental tool for elucidating neural mechanisms of (states of) consciousness and there are recently discovered treatment options with LSD in cluster headache and with the terminally ill.
Research Summary of 'The pharmacology of lysergic acid diethylamide: a review'
Introduction
Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is a semisynthetic derivative of lysergic acid originally obtained from the rye fungus Claviceps purpurea. Albert Hofmann synthesised LSD in 1938 and discovered its psychoactive properties in 1943. During the 1950s and 1960s LSD was widely used in psychiatric research both as an experimental tool to model psychotic-like states and as an adjunct in psychotherapeutic approaches described as psycholytic or psychedelic therapy. Recreational and spiritual use expanded in the late 1960s, after which regulatory restrictions and declines in research funding sharply reduced clinical work with the drug. Passie and colleagues set out to review the pharmacology and psychopharmacology of LSD because the experimental literature is extensive, dispersed across many decades and languages, and no comprehensive review had been available since the 1950s. The review aims to collate chemical, pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic, toxicological, physiological, and psychiatric data from the experimental literature to provide an updated synthesis useful for researchers and clinicians interested in LSD as a research tool and potential therapeutic agent.
Expert Research Summaries
Go Pro to access AI-powered section-by-section summaries, editorial takes, and the full research toolkit.
Full Text PDF
Full Paper PDF
Create a free account to open full-text PDFs.
Study Details
- Study Typemeta
- Journal
- Compound
- Topics
- Authors
- APA Citation
Passie, T., Halpern, J. H., Stichtenoth, D. O., Emrich, H. M., & Hintzen, A. (2008). The pharmacology of lysergic acid diethylamide: a review. CNS Neuroscience & Therapeutics, 14(4), 295-314. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-5949.2008.00059.x
References (7)
Papers cited by this study that are also in Blossom
Cohen, S. · Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease (1980)
Sewell, R. A. · Neurology (2006)
Strassman, R. J. · Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease (1984)
Halpern, J. H., Pope Jr, H. G. · Drug and Alcohol Dependence (1999)
Vollenweider, F. X., Leenders, K. L., Maguire, P. et al. · Neuropsychopharmacology (1997)
Riba, J., Valle, M., Urbano, G. et al. · Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (2003)
Bonson, K. R. · Neuropsychopharmacology (1996)
Cited By (105)
Papers in Blossom that reference this study
Robison, R., Barrow, R., Conant, C. et al. · JAMA (2025)
Zhou, K., De Wied, D., Carhart-Harris, R. L. et al. · PNAS (2025)
Morse, D. J., Jeong, S. H., Murphy, R. J. et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2025)
Modzelewski, S., Waszkiewicz, N., Lukasiewicz, K. et al. · Neuropharmacology (2025)
Bonnelle, V., Feilding, A., Rosas, F. E. et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2024)
Caspani, G., Ruffell, S. G. D., Tsang, WF. et al. · Pharmacological Research (2024)
Rieser, N. M. · Biological Psychiatry (2024)
Moujaes, F., Lisa, J., Rahmati, M. et al. · eLife (2024)
Solaja, I., Haldane, K., Mason, N. et al. · Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews (2024)
Neumann, J., Dhein, S., Kirchhefer, U. et al. · Frontiers in Pharmacology (2024)
Show all 105 papersShow fewer
Aicher, H. D., Mueller, M. J., Dornbierer, D. A. et al. · Frontiers in Psychiatry (2024)
Molla, H. M., Lee, R., Tare, I. et al. · Neuropsychopharmacology (2023)
Dornbierer, D. A., Marten, L., Mueller, J. et al. · Frontiers in Pharmacology (2023)
Schindler, E. A. D. · Current Pain and Headache Reports (2023)
Zafar, R., Siegel, M., Harding, R. et al. · Frontiers in Psychiatry (2023)
Thal, S. B., Wieberneit, M., Sharbanee, J. M. et al. · Journal of Humanistic Psychology (2023)
Sadibolova, R., Murray-Lawson, C., Family, N. et al. · Biorxiv (2023)
Wießner, I., Falchi, M., Daldegan-Bueno, D. et al. · European Neuropsychopharmacology (2023)
Ruffini, G., Damiani, G., Lozano-Soldevilla, D. et al. · PLOS ONE (2023)
Weleff, J., Anand, A., Dewey, E. N. et al. · MedRvix (2022)
Ornelas, I. M., Cini, F. A., Wießner, I. et al. · Experimental Neurology (2022)
Cao, C., Barros-Álvarez, X., Kim, K. et al. · Neuron (2022)
Luppi, A. I., Hansen, J. Y., Adapa, R. et al. · Biorxiv (2022)
Rusanen, S. S., Schindler, E. A. D., Artto, V. A. et al. · Current Pain and Headache Reports (2022)
McCulloch, D. E-W., Knudsen, G. M., Barrett, F. S. et al. · Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews (2022)
Lawn, T., Dipasquale, O., Vamvakas, A. et al. · Psychopharmacology (2022)
Family, N., Hendricks, P. S., Williams, L. T. J. et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2022)
Elman, I., Borsook, D., Pustilink, A. · Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews (2022)
de Wit, H., Molla, H. M., Bershad, A. K. et al. · Addiction Biology (2022)
Müller, F., Holze, F., Becker, A. M. et al. · Psychopharmacology (2022)
Arnaud, K. O. S. · Drugs Education Prevention and Policy (2021)
Maia, L. O., Feilding, A., Ribeiro, S. et al. · Psychopharmacology (2021)
Holze, F., Caluori, T. V., Vizeli, P. et al. · Psychopharmacology (2021)
Catalani, V., Corkery, J. M., Guirguis, A. et al. · European Neuropsychopharmacology (2021)
Burt, J. B., Preller, K. H., Demirtaş, M. et al. · eLife (2021)
Wießner, I., Falchi, M., Palhano-Fontes, F. et al. · Psychological Medicine (2021)
Jobst, B. M., Atasoy, S., Ponce-Alvarez, A. et al. · NeuroImage (2021)
Olbrich, S., Preller, K. H., Vollenweider, F. X. · Psychophysiology (2021)
Kaertner, L. S., Steinborn, M. B., Kettner, H. et al. · Scientific Reports (2021)
Nichols, D. E., Walter, H. · Pharmacopsychiatry (2020)
Hibicke, M., Gobbi, G. · Journal of Neuroscience (2020)
Andersen, K. A. A., Carhart-Harris, R. L., Nutt, D. J. et al. · Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica (2020)
Holze, F., Vizeli, P., Ley, L. et al. · Neuropsychopharmacology (2020)
Schmid, Y., Gasser, P., Oehen, P. et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2020)
Thompson, C., Szabo, A. · Immunology Letters (2020)
Ramaekers, J. G., Hutten, N. P. W., Mason, N. L. et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2020)
Preller, K. H., Burt, J. B., Adkinson, B. et al. · Biological Psychiatry (2020)
Greenway, K. T., Garel, N., Jerome, L. et al. · Expert Review of Clinical Pharmacology (2020)
Krediet, E., Bostoen, T., Breeksema, J. J. et al. · International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology (2020)
Mathai, D. S., Meyer, M. J., Storch, E. A. et al. · Journal of Affective Disorders (2020)
Reiff, C. M., Richman, E. E., Nemeroff, C. B. et al. · American Journal of Psychiatry (2020)
Fuentes, J. J., Fonseca, F., Elices, M. et al. · Frontiers in Psychiatry (2020)
Haden, M., Woods, B. · Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs (2020)
Bershad, A. K., Schepers, S. T., Bremmer, M. P. et al. · Biological Psychiatry (2019)
Luethi, D., Hoener, M. C., Krähenbühl, S. et al. · Biochemical Pharmacology (2019)
Libânio Osório Marta, R. F. · Drug Metabolism Reviews (2019)
Richards, W. A., Garcia-Romeu, A. · International Review of Psychiatry (2018)
Preller, K. H., Burt, J. B., Adkinson, B. et al. · eLife (2018)
Schenberg, E. E. · Frontiers in Pharmacology (2018)
Nichols, D. E. · ACS Chemical Neuroscience (2018)
Reiche, S., Hermle, L., Gutwinski, S. et al. · Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry (2018)
Barrett, F. S., Preller, K. H., Herdener, M. et al. · Cerebral Cortex (2017)
Winkelman, M. J. · Frontiers in Neuroscience (2017)
Schmid, Y., Liechti, M. E. · Psychopharmacology (2017)
Liechti, M. E., Dolder, P. C., Grünblatt, E. et al. · Frontiers in Pharmacology (2017)
Pokorny, T., Preller, K. H., Kometer, M. et al. · International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology (2017)
Liechti, M. E. · Neuropsychopharmacology (2017)
Kraehenmann, R. ;., Pokorny, D. ;., Vollenweider, L. ;. et al. · Psychopharmacology (2017)
Mueller, F., Lenz, C., Dolder, P. C. et al. · Translational Psychiatry (2017)
Kaelen, M. · Imperial College London (2017)
Dolder, P. C., Schmid, Y., Steuer, A. E. et al. · Clinical Pharmacokinetics (2017)
Preller, K. H., Herdener, M., Pokorny, T. et al. · Current Biology (2017)
Wacker, D., Wang, S., Mccorvy, J. D. et al. · Cell (2017)
Rucker, J., Young, A. H., Jelen, L. A. et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2016)
Kapócs, G., Scholkmann, F., Salari, V. et al. · Reviews In The Neuroscience (2016)
Liechti, M. E., Dolder, P. C., Schmid, Y. · Psychopharmacology (2016)
De Gregorio, D., Posa, L., Ochoa-Sanchez, R. et al. · Pharmacological Research (2016)
Garcia-Romeu, A., Kersgaard, B., Addy, P. H. · Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology (2016)
Rickli, A., Moning, O. D., Hoener, M. C. et al. · European Neuropsychopharmacology (2016)
Tófoli, L. F., De Araujo, D. B. · International Review of Neurobiology (2016)
Dolder, P. C., Schmid, Y., Müller, F. et al. · Neuropsychopharmacology (2016)
Lebedev, A. V., Kaelen, M., L€ Ovd En, M. et al. · Human Brain Mapping (2016)
Nichols, D. E. · Pharmacological Reviews (2016)
Strajhar, P., Schmid, Y., Liakoni, E. et al. · Journal of Neuroendocrinology (2016)
Das, S., Barnwal, P., Ramasamy, A. et al. · Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology (2016)
Larsen, J. K. · History of Psychiatry (2016)
Rickli, A., Luethi, D., Reinisch, J. et al. · Neuropharmacology (2015)
Schmid, Y., Enzler, F., Gasser, P. et al. · Biological Psychiatry (2015)
Kaelen, M., Barrett, F. S., Roseman, L. et al. · Psychopharmacology (2015)
Szabo, A. · Frontiers in Immunology (2015)
Dolder, P. C., Schmid, Y., Haschke, M. et al. · International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology (2015)
Majic, T., Schmidt, T. T., Gallinat, J. · Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology (2015)
Carvalho, J., Carvalho, M., de Sousa, M. P. et al. · Current Drug Abuse Reviews (2015)
Kirchner, K. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2014)
Suzuki, J., Dekker, M. A., Valenti, E. S. et al. · Psychosomatics (2014)
Litjens, R. P. W., Brunt, T. M., Alderliefste, G. et al. · European Neuropsychopharmacology (2014)
Winkelman, M. J. · Current Drug Abuse Reviews (2014)
Gasser, P., Holstein, D., Michel, Y. et al. · Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease (2014)
Sinke, C., Halpern, J. H., Zedler, M. et al. · Consciousness and Cognition (2012)
Bouso, J. C., González, D., Fondevila, S. et al. · PLOS ONE (2012)
Krebs, T. S., Johansen, P. Ø. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2012)
Labate, B. C. · Journal of Psychoactive Drugs (2011)
Grossman, L., Utterback, E., Stewart, A. et al. · Behavioural Brain Research (2010)
Fábregas, J. M., González, D., Fondevila, S. et al. · Drug and Alcohol Dependence (2010)
Karst, M., Halpern, J. H., Bernateck, M. et al. · Cephalalgia (2010)
Your Personal Research Library
Go Pro to save papers, add notes, rate studies, and organize your research into custom shelves.