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.
15 papers
This 2002 review looked at animal and human research on exercise and the brain. It reports that voluntary exercise in animals raises levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and other growth factors, spurs the birth of new neurons, changes gene activity in ways that support plasticity, and can improve learning…
This review looks at studies about classic psychedelics (like LSD, psilocybin, and DMT/ayahuasca) and their effects on neuroplasticity — the brain’s ability to change. Animal studies show these drugs can raise genes tied to plasticity and cause dendrite and synapse growth. Human results are mixed, especially when studies use blood…
This review looked at many studies about classic psychedelics (like psilocybin and LSD), MDMA, ketamine, and plant medicines (like ayahuasca). The authors explain how these drugs can change the brain’s wiring, calm inflammatory processes, and shift key brain chemicals. Those actions may help explain why small clinical trials and animal…
This 2020 systematic review looked at human and animal studies on physical exercise and brain plasticity. The authors screened 20,782 records and included 21 original studies. They reported that exercise was linked to higher levels of several neurotrophic factors and receptors, more cell growth and proliferation, and better measures of…
Many studies show that physical exercise helps brain health and can slow age-related thinking problems and lower the risk of some brain diseases and psychiatric disorders. A key part of these benefits is higher levels of the brain protein BDNF, which supports new brain cells and plasticity for learning and…
This review paper brings together animal and human studies to explain how alcohol and stress hormones may change the prefrontal cortex and the body’s stress system as drinking moves from casual use toward dependence. The authors say alcohol raises stress hormones (glucocorticoids) right away, and repeated heavy use can produce…
This paper suggests a new way to study how psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAP) might work. The authors propose that psychedelics could put the adult brain into a state similar to developmental "critical periods," times when the brain is highly sensitive to experience. They recommend using a well-studied visual system model (ocular…
In a randomized trial, 98 adults with treatment-resistant depression had brain scans before and 24 hours after a single intravenous infusion of ketamine (0.5 mg/kg) or saline. The researchers measured mean diffusivity (DTI-MD), an MRI-based, indirect marker of microstructural brain change that tends to fall when new synapses or tissue…
This review explains that classical serotonergic psychedelics — drugs like psilocybin, DMT (in ayahuasca), LSD, and ibogaine — can change brain cells and connections in lab and animal studies. These drugs have been shown to help neurons grow new branches and form more synapses, which are the contact points where…
This paper is a review of recent research on psychedelic drugs. The authors say some clinical trials show these drugs can help people with post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse problems, and depression that has not improved with other treatments. But scientists do not yet understand all the biological ways these…
Researchers reviewed about 300 studies and closely read 29 that tested how ketamine changes the brain at the molecular level in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). They looked at short-term changes that happen while the drug is active and longer-term changes that can last after the drug is gone. Short-term changes…
This mini-review describes how large or severe traumatic events can change the brain and affect thinking, emotions, and behavior. It says areas such as the amygdala and the prefrontal cortex show physiological changes after trauma, which are linked to problems with memory, attention, and emotional control. The paper also highlights…
