Blossom Pulse Archive
What happened in psychedelic research in 2010
64 events from 2010, dated by when they happened rather than when we logged them. Papers as they published, trials starting and finishing, programme milestones, and the news coverage around them, grouped by week.
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Week of 13 December 2010
This study will consist of a single session of MDMA-assisted therapy with a full dose of MDMA for people who took part in a study of MDMA-assisted therapy in people with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) whose PTSD symptoms returned to higher levels at least a year after the first MDMA sessions. The single session will be performed by the same pair of therapists who performed the sessions in the first study. People will have a preparatory session, the MDMA-assisted session and three non-drug sessions afterward. Their PTSD symptoms and symptoms of depression will be measured at the start of this study and two and 12 months after the session.
MDMA
Week of 29 November 2010
This double-blind, placebo-controlled study (2010) found large individual variability in MDA-induced visions (n=12) and suggests that they could have similar mechanisms as other hallucinatory syndromes.
LSDPsilocybinHeadache Disorders (Cluster & Migraine)Chronic PainRandomized double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover Phase I study (n=16) testing clonidine (150 µg) pre-treatment versus placebo on pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics of MDMA (125 mg) in healthy volunteers.
MDMAProspective case–control observational study (n=39) comparing hangover symptoms after New Year's Eve between MDMA users, other drug users, and alcohol-only users.
MDMAThe investigators hope to see if a commonly used drug such as ketamine could help depressed ER patients feel better and improve their mood quickly.
KetamineThis within-subjects, placebo-controlled study (n=21) found that MDMA (52,5-105mg/70kg) may be more accurately characterized as increasing social approach behavior rather than empathy as such.
MDMAInterpersonal Functioning & Social ConnectednessThis study administered LSD (5-250 μg/L) to zebrafish and found that zebrafish could be an adequate model for the study of hallucinogenic drugs.
LSDAnxiety DisordersThis commentary (2010) examines how to integrate these spiritual healing rituals into contemporary Western concepts of psychological health and ethical conduct, and calls for an enforcement mechanism of accountability for monitoring the reputations of different ritual leaders to protect the community from predatory practices.
AyahuascaEquity and Ethics
Week of 8 November 2010
This randomised, double-blind, dose-comparison Phase II study (n=26) tested 30 mg, 75 mg, and 125 mg MDMA plus psychotherapy in veterans with chronic PTSD.
MDMA
Week of 1 November 2010
On 1 November 2010, Colin Holyk resubmitted the application after Health Canada took nine months to respond to the original September 2009 submission with questions about the proposed licensed dealer activities. MAPS said it had clarified the Canadian regulatory requirements and would complete any further steps needed to start the study.
MDMAPTSDThe investigators propose to assess the efficacy, feasibility, tolerability and safety of N-methyl-D-aspartate antagonist augmentation of ECT using ketamine.
Ketamine
Week of 11 October 2010
On 14 October 2010, Rick Doblin met Moshe Kotler in Tel Aviv to discuss results from the first five subjects and the design of a new protocol. Kotler and co-therapist Sergio Marchevsky signed the report, which was to accompany the protocol application to Israel’s Ministry of Health. Doblin also met prospective co-therapists in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
MDMAPTSD
Week of 27 September 2010
From 27 September to 1 October 2010, Berra Yazar-Klosinski and Amy Emerson archived the first US MDMA/PTSD pilot study’s research data in Charleston, South Carolina, duplicating documents for security and potential FDA audits. Berra, Amy, Ilsa Jerome and the Mithoefers were preparing a report covering study conduct, IRB interactions, communications with the FDA and DEA, and raw and analysed data. The FDA may independently analyse the raw data.
MDMAPTSDThe primary objectives of this study are to investigate the potential for ketamine anaesthesia to increase the antidepressant efficacy of Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and to decrease acute ECT-induced adverse cognitive effects.
KetamineIn this study, our aim is to determine an active but tolerable sublingual dose (range 100 to 4000 µg) of Salvinorin A (SA) in experienced subjects.
Salvia DivinorumThis review (2010) summarizes recent findings on biotransformation, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacological actions of 5-MeO-DMT, with particular regard to hyper-serotonergic effects of 5-MeO-DMT and bufotenine in response to inhibition of the monoamine oxidase (MAO) metabolic pathway via harmaline (together often found in ayahuasca brews).
5-MeO-DMTMedicinal Chemistry & Drug DevelopmentThis paper reports the results of two survey-based studies (n=242), comparing the addiction severity among rural ayahuasca users with those in urban areas. Overall, the authors report that ritual ayahuasca use doesn't appear to be associated with deleterious psychosocial effects typically associated with other drugs of abuse.
AyahuascaSubstance Use Disorders (SUD)
Week of 20 September 2010
This paper (2010) reviewed studies using intravenous ketamine administration to develop a model of individual variability in response to ketamine.
KetamineSchizophreniaNeuroimaging & Brain MeasuresSet & SettingPooled analysis of eight double‑blind, placebo‑controlled studies in 110 healthy volunteers found that psilocybin produced dose‑dependent profound changes in mood, perception, thought and self‑experience that most participants described as pleasurable and enriching, while acute dysphoric or panic reactions occurred only at the highest doses and were resolved with interpersonal support without pharmacological intervention. Follow‑up found no evidence of subsequent drug abuse, persistent perceptual disorders, prolonged psychosis or long‑term functional impairment, suggesting moderate doses in well‑prepared, closely monitored research settings carry an acceptable level of risk.
PsilocybinAnxiety DisordersHealthy VolunteersSubstance Use Disorders (SUD)Schizophrenia
Week of 13 September 2010
Health Canada requested additional information after more than a month of waiting from the pharmacist working to obtain permits and licensing for MDMA encapsulation. The study has design approval and could begin once the MDMA is obtained, but import and export permits and shipment from Switzerland to Vancouver were expected to take several more months.
MDMA
Week of 30 August 2010
This survey study (n=121) found that smoking was the most common way of using DMT (98% vs 30% in ayahuasca) amongst Australian users. A general interest in psychedelics and DMT specifically were the main reasons for using it.
AyahuascaDMTTobacco/Nicotine Use Disorder (TUD)Substance Use Disorders (SUD)This study conducted a psychometric evaluation of the altered states of consciousness rating scale (OAV). Data (n=591) was pooled from 43 different studies. The analyses showed that the originally proposed model did not fit the data well and new (lower order) scales were constructed, which have better psychometric properties.
Week of 23 August 2010
On 19 July 2010, Health Canada accepted a letter from the University of Victoria’s Center for Addiction Research of British Columbia as proof of institutional affiliation for Dr Ingrid Pacey’s study. CARBC confirmed its support on 22 July, helping advance what was expected to be Canada’s first psychedelic research study in almost 40 years and to assess whether U.S. results could be replicated.
MDMAPTSD
Week of 16 August 2010
This oft-cited (457+) opinion/review article by Vollenweider & Kometer gives an overview of the neurobiology of psychedelics and where research stood in 2010.
Anxiety DisordersSchizophreniaNeuroimaging & Brain Measures
Week of 26 July 2010
This double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised study (n=18) with those suffering from bipolar depression (BD; treatment-resistant) found that ketamine (35mg/70kg; 2x 2w apart) produced anti-depressant effects as measured on the MADRS scale. The effects were found immediately (40 minutes) and lasted up to three days.
KetamineAnxiety DisordersBipolar DisorderDepressive DisordersMajor Depressive Disorder (MDD)Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)Public Health, Prevention & Behaviour ChangePersonality DisordersThis survey study (n=626) investigated user perceptions of the benefits and harms of using LSD, psilocybin, MDMA, cannabis, ketamine, and alcohol. Overall, LSD and psilocybin were regarded as having the most positive impact on wellbeing, and the least harms in terms of physical and mental health.
LSDMDMAPsilocybinHeadache Disorders (Cluster & Migraine)Chronic Pain
Week of 19 July 2010
In the first randomised controlled pilot trial, MDMA-assisted psychotherapy produced significantly greater reductions in Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale scores than placebo in 20 patients with chronic, treatment‑resistant post‑traumatic stress disorder (83% response vs 25%). There were no drug‑related serious adverse events, adverse neurocognitive effects or clinically significant blood pressure increases, suggesting MDMA may be a safe and effective adjunct to psychotherapy in refractory PTSD.
MDMAPTSDAnxiety DisordersNeurocognitive DisordersSafety & Risk Management
Week of 5 July 2010
Shulgin was not the first to synthesise MDMA, but his re‑synthesised and self‑administered use in 1976, his introduction of the drug to psychotherapist Leo Zeff in 1977, and his 1978 human pharmacology paper with David Nichols were pivotal in its modern history. These actions explain why he is often, albeit inaccurately, referred to as MDMA’s “father”.
MDMA
Week of 28 June 2010
Randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover Phase I study (n=16) testing clonidine (150 µg) pre-treatment versus placebo on pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics of MDMA (125 mg) in healthy volunteers.
MDMAWithin-subjects, double-blind, placebo-controlled study (n=65) testing MDMA (0, 0.75, 1.5 mg/kg, to 125 mg) with oxytocin (20 IU) as an active control in healthy volunteers to assess social and emotional processing.
MDMA
Week of 21 June 2010
The study received Swiss approvals in 2007, enrolled its first subject on 23 April 2008 and has now treated all subjects. It investigated the safety and effectiveness of LSD-assisted psychotherapy and cost $190,000, which was fully raised.
LSDAnxiety DisordersThe amendment, approved on 25 May 2010, allows therapy sessions to be recorded for patients who request the recordings and for developing an LSD-assisted psychotherapy treatment manual. On 22 June, the eighth participant began the first of two experimental LSD sessions for anxiety associated with life-threatening illnesses. Principal Investigator Peter Gasser was seeking the final participant, while follow-up data collection continued.
LSDAnxiety DisordersThis Phase II, triple-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled study (n=23) evaluates MDMA-assisted therapy (125 mg + 62.5 mg) across two 8-hour sessions for chronic, treatment-resistant PTSD.
MDMA
Week of 7 June 2010
This book chapter (2010) reviews the effects of psychedelics on the brain, specifically looking at the serotonin (5HT) receptors.
Medicinal Chemistry & Drug DevelopmentInterpersonal Functioning & Social Connectedness
Week of 31 May 2010
Ketamine has been proposed as a novel approach to induce rapid antidepressant response. In this pilot study (n=10) a single IV subanaesthetic ketamine infusion (0.5 mg/kg) was administered to treatment-resistant patients with major depressive disorder to assess clinical and brain-functional effects.
KetamineDouble-blind, randomised, parallel pilot study (n≈31) comparing ketamine (1–2 mg/kg IV) versus methohexital (0.5–1 mg/kg IV) anesthesia during ECT for depressive episodes to assess speed of remission and cognitive side effects.
Ketamine
Week of 17 May 2010
Led by Peter Oehen with Verena Widmer, the study completed its experimental phase in January 2010. Six participants had completed long-term follow-up, one had withdrawn and five remained; MAPS had verified a new database and begun data entry and cleaning, with final analysis planned after the study ends at the beginning of 2011.
LSDMDMAAnxiety DisordersPTSD
Week of 3 May 2010
Randomised, triple-blind Phase II trial (n=12) comparing two sessions of full-dose MDMA-assisted psychotherapy (125 mg + 62.5 mg supplemental) versus low-dose active placebo MDMA (25 mg + 12.5 mg) for chronic PTSD.
MDMA
Week of 26 April 2010
Randomised, double-blind, crossover Phase I study (n=16) testing duloxetine (120 mg, two pre-doses) versus placebo as a pretreatment to MDMA (125 mg) in healthy volunteers to assess pharmacodynamic, cardiovascular, and pharmacokinetic effects.
MDMA
Week of 19 April 2010
This completed Phase III, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial examined whether changes in prefrontal QEEG theta cordance after intravenous ketamine could predict antidepressant response in adults with a major depressive episode. The linked publication reports 27 patients receiving ketamine 0.54 mg/kg and saline placebo one week apart.
Ketamine
Week of 12 April 2010
In a mock‑MRI environment, slow intravenous administration of up to 2 mg psilocybin in healthy, hallucinogen‑experienced volunteers produced short‑lived, typical drug effects that were psychologically and physiologically well tolerated. The findings support the feasibility of conducting fMRI studies with psilocybin under appropriate care.
PsilocybinNeuroimaging & Brain MeasuresSafety & Risk Management
Week of 5 April 2010
This double-blind cross-over study (n=16) finds that pindolol (medication for hypertension, 20mg) prevents the heart-raising effects of MDMA (112mg/70kg) but not the elevation of blood pressure.
MDMANeurocognitive DisordersHealthy VolunteersDouble-blind, placebo-controlled, 4-way crossover study (n=20) testing single-dose oral MDMA (100 mg), alcohol (0.5 g/kg), and their combination on simulated driving and driving-related cognitive performance in experienced MDMA users.
MDMA
Week of 29 March 2010
The primary objectives of this study are to investigate the potential for ketamine anaesthesia to increase the antidepressant efficacy of Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and to decrease acute ECT-induced adverse cognitive effects.
KetaminePlacebo-controlled, double-blind, within-subject study (n=12) assessing acute and 24–48 h post-dose effects of a single 1.5 mg/kg oral MDMA dose on sleep, water homeostasis, and cognition in experienced users.
MDMAThe investigators hope to see if a commonly used drug such as ketamine could help depressed ER patients feel better and improve their mood quickly.
KetamineIn this study investigators are studying the effects of a drug called ketamine on the symptoms of Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
KetamineThis chemical profiling study investigated the different formulations of ayahuasca and proposes that the identified compounds can serve as reliable markets for the potency/composition of ayahuasca brews.
AyahuascaNeurocognitive Disorders
Week of 22 March 2010
This open-label, case series study (n=6) investigated the efficacy of the non-hallucinogenic LSD-analog BOL-148 (3 doses of 2100µg/70kg) for treating cluster headaches within a clinically diagnosed patient sample. The results show that three single doses of BOL-148 within 10 days can either break a cluster headache cycle or considerably improve the frequency and intensity of attacks, even resulting in changing from a chronic to an episodic form, with remission extending for many months or longer.
LSDChronic PainHeadache Disorders (Cluster & Migraine)
Week of 1 March 2010
Health Canada and a Canadian Institutional Review Board had approved the study, but importing MDMA from Switzerland required affiliation with a Canadian institution. MAPS affiliated with the Center for Addiction Research in British Columbia and awaited further approvals for licensing. MAPS Canada was also being formed to fund the Vancouver PTSD study and Philippe Lucas’s ayahuasca study for addiction.
AyahuascaMDMAPTSDThis ethnographic case study of psychedelic research examines the role of first-person subjective experience for researchers and how it influences their paradigm in theory and practice. Langlitz found that while researchers maintain an objectivist façade that maintains the primacy of psychopharmacological techniques such as neuroimaging, most researchers believe that psychedelics can not be explained in pharmacological terms alone, but also depends on set and setting. Therefore, the author urges reconciliation between the fields of psychopharmacology and the human sciences.
Neuroimaging & Brain MeasuresSet & SettingDouble-blind, randomised, six-condition crossover study (n=18) testing MDMA 75 mg with ketanserin 50 mg, pindolol 20 mg, and placebo to probe 5-HT2 and 5-HT1A contributions to MDMA-induced memory impairment and impulsivity in experienced MDMA users.
MDMARandomised, double‑blind, crossover pharmacology study in healthy volunteers (n=16) testing reboxetine (8 mg, two doses) on subjective and cardiovascular effects of MDMA (125 mg).
MDMAThis commentary paper (2010) matches the tone of Sessa (2008) that also argued that psychedelics and creativity should be studied again.
CreativityEquity and Ethics
Week of 22 February 2010
This theory-building paper (2010) attempts to provide models of neural substrates for a variety of Freudian hypothetical constructs.
SchizophreniaNeuroimaging & Brain MeasuresThis Phase I, dose-escalation safety study (n=24) evaluated repeated 0.5 mg/kg IV ketamine infusions in adults with treatment-resistant depression.
Ketamine
Week of 15 February 2010
In a case series of 33 open‑label, non‑medical treatments for opioid detoxification, ibogaine resolved signs of acute opioid withdrawal without further drug‑seeking within 24 hours in 25 patients (sustained for 72 hours), with varied outcomes in the remainder and one possible fatality; the authors conclude that ibogaine’s apparent effectiveness warrants systematic clinical investigation.
IbogaineOpioid Use Disorder (OUD)Substance Use Disorders (SUD)This early review from 1957 details the clinical effects of what was back then still called psychotomimetics, i.e., psychedelics.
Schizophrenia
Week of 8 February 2010
The DEA rejected licensing Professor Lyle Craker to grow marijuana at a MAPS-sponsored facility at UMass Amherst, while Michelle Leonhart was nominated as DEA Administrator. MAPS said it may sue the DEA if the licence is not granted and is working with policy and civil liberties groups to question Leonhart’s appointment. Its clinical team submitted documents to a Jordanian Institutional Review Board for an MDMA/PTSD study, with enrolment planned for spring pending approval.
MDMAPTSD
Week of 1 February 2010
This manuscript (2020) presents new data on the affinity of psychedelic drugs at receptors, transporters, and ion channels. Psychedelics (phenylalkylamines specifically) are not as selective as generally believed (they bind to more receptors).
Randomized double-blind active placebo-controlled trial (LUMC Department of Anesthesiology, Leiden, Netherlands) of a single 30-minute IV infusion of S(+)-ketamine 0.5 mg/kg vs midazolam 5 mg (active placebo) in adult fibromyalgia patients (ACR 1990 criteria, baseline spontaneous pain VAS ≥5). Target enrollment: 24 (12 per arm). Primary outcomes: spontaneous fibromyalgia pain (VAS, acute phase at 45–180 min) and plasma S-ketamine/S-norketamine concentrations for PKPD modeling. Secondary outcomes: Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ) and experimental heat pain (thermode VAS), both assessed weekly over 8 weeks of follow-up. Additional registry IDs: NL1296 (new NTR), NL23851.058.08 (CCMO), NL-OMON 22499. Supported by TREND Delft.
EsketamineThis study (2010) shows evidence of the potential efficacy of ayahuasca in the treatment of Parkinson's disease. Several extracts are examined and scored according to the different (expected) effects.
AyahuascaNeurocognitive DisordersPublic Health, Prevention & Behaviour Change
Week of 28 December 2009
Randomised, single-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study (n=12) assessing IV S(+)-ketamine PK/PD and experimental analgesia in healthy volunteers.
KetamineThis unregistered trial (n=51) was a pooled analysis of two controlled ketamine infusion studies for major depressive disorder in inpatients, which found that heart rate and heart rate variability could serve as predictive biomarkers for treatment response.
Ketamine
Showing 64 of 64 in 2010