Each month our editorial team sifts through hundreds of papers and curates notable findings—for practitioners and informed readers who want to stay current with the evidence. Subscribe to the monthly Research Digest for expert analysis and concise summaries of key papers.
1 paper
Researchers are cautiously optimistic about using psilocybin (the active part of 'magic' mushrooms) to reduce anxiety in some situations. Small clinical trials, especially in people facing life‑threatening illness, often showed falls in anxiety after carefully guided psilocybin sessions paired with therapy. However, most studies are small or early stage, so scientists say bigger and more rigorous trials are needed before psilocybin can be called a proven treatment. Scientists have ideas about how psilocybin might help. Lab and brain‑imaging studies suggest it acts on serotonin receptors, can make brain circuits more flexible (called neuroplasticity), and can change activity in brain networks linked to self‑focused worry. But biological markers are not consistent yet, and many questions remain about who it helps, how long benefits last, and any longer‑term risks.
This paper is a careful review of research about treatment-resistant depression. The authors looked through medical studies to see how doctors define this kind of depression, what makes it hard to assess, and which treatments have been tried. They describe drug strategies like adding lithium or thyroid hormone, switching antidepressant…
