According to a study by the University of Michigan, single doses of psychedelic compounds can enhance cognitive flexibility several weeks after treatment. This discovery can change how we deal with situations ranging from depression to neurodegenerative diseases.
The study, published April 22 in the Journal of Psychedelica, found that mice with learning tasks performed significantly better on the 25cn-nboh learning task compared to untreated mice.
“This finding is particularly important for the duration of cognitive benefits only after one psychedelic dose,” explained Professor Omar J. Ahmed, senior author of the study. “We observed enhanced learning adaptation that lasted for weeks, suggesting that these compounds may lead to lasting and behaviorally meaningful neuroplastic changes in the prefrontal cortex.”
The research team measured cognitive flexibility—the brain’s ability to adapt to changing environments—using specialized learning tests, mice must adapt to reverse rules. Long after the direct effects of the drug disappeared, the treated mice showed significant improvement in handling these psychological transitions.
This finding is particularly exciting because cognitive flexibility is crucial for mental health. Many psychiatric disorders, including depression and PTSD, involve rigid mindsets, and traditional therapies can be difficult to change.
“The most striking aspect we found is that these cognitive benefits were measured 15-20 days after a psychedelic management,” noted Elizabeth J. Brouns, the first author of the study. “This suggests that a psychedelic dose not only temporarily changes perception, but may lead to lasting beneficial changes in brain function.”
Unlike many psychedelic studies focusing on direct experience effects, this study shows a lasting improvement in actual cognitive abilities—the exploration of these compounds may fundamentally re-think principals’ flexible thinking.
Another important finding is that both male and female mice showed improvements, indicating the potential broad applicability of biological sex, an important consideration for future human treatment.
Dr. Ahmed raised an interesting question about the future of the study: “A key question is that two, three, three, and even twenty doses were taken in a few months. Is every additional dose added to each dose becoming more and more beneficial for flexible learning, or is there a negative effect of altitude or even too many doses?”
The study’s innovative automated testing method also represents a breakthrough that may accelerate how researchers can evaluate the cognitive effects of various compounds in the rapidly expanding psychedelic medicine field.
As scientists continue to uncover the neurobiological mechanisms behind these lasting cognitive benefits, the study raises the tempting possibility of reopening brain plasticity periods, which provides new hope for conditions where cognitive flexibility is impaired.
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