As we all attempt to find our new normal after years of pandemic living, it’s evident that this will involve an immense societal need to focus on individual mental health. With nearly one in five adults living with a mental illness, finding innovative new approaches to diagnosis, treatment, and prevention are crucial to improving the lives of millions of people. Investigators at the Mass General Research Institute are working to do just that. 

This week, we talked to Sharmin Ghaznavi, MD, PhD, the Associate Director & Director of Cognitive Neuroscience at the Center for the Neuroscience of Psychedelics at Mass General Hospital, who is also an Instructor in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. 

“I think after the pandemic we really are going to be facing an epidemic—if not pandemic—of worsening mental health,” says Dr. Ghaznavi.  “The need for treatment options and a need to strengthen our systems of care is greater than it has ever been.”

“All of our (current) treatments work by inducing changes in the brain, by neuroplasticity. What we know is that in some patients with mental illnesses, there are lower levels of molecules that contribute to neuroplasticity—or the capacity of the brain to change in meaningful ways that correspond with changes in behavior.”

Could looking outside the traditional avenues of drug development help? That’s the goal of the Center for the Neuroscience of Psychedelics, which seeks to apply scientific rigor to the use of psychedelics as treatments for depression and other mental health disorders. 

Studies suggest that psychedelics such as LSD, MDMA, and psilocybin may facilitate neuroplasticity at the cellular and network levels, allowing the brain to form new connections and reorganize existing ones. 

Ghaznavi is conducting a research study testing the effects of psilocybin—the psychedelic compound found in the drug known as “magic mushrooms”—on the process of rumination. 

“Rumination occurs when self-reflection goes awry and it becomes very negative and vicious,” Ghaznavi explains, “It’s where people go over all of the things they think they did wrong and the problems that they feel badly about without actively trying to problem-solve.” 

Rumination is a huge aspect of many psychiatric illnesses including depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, and social anxiety disorder. It decreases the likelihood of engaging with others and can strain existing relationships. 

Previous research studies have shown that psilocybin reduces activity in the default mode network—the part of the brain responsible for our sense of self that happens to be particularly active during rumination. 

The hope is that the one-two combination of reducing activity in the brain area responsible for rumination and promoting the growth of new brain neurons and systems can help patients with treatment-resistant depression break out of the cycle of negative thoughts and beliefs. 

So how exactly does the center give research participants psilocybin? It’s not as simple as handing out bags of magic mushrooms.

“The psilocybin we are using was manufactured by a company using good manufacturing processes (GMP), and the whole protocol for therapy that accompanies it has been tested and previously shown to have good safety,” Ghaznavi explains. “So the compound is different, and the experience around it is so tailored and controlled in clinical trials.”

So while it is the same compound found in magic mushrooms, it’s in a controlled format only given to patients under the watchful eye of doctors, therapists, and psychiatrists like Dr. Ghaznavi. 

While there is a growing body of research suggesting that psychedelics may be beneficial in treating mental illness, the field is still in its early stages. Given the historical perception of psychedelics as recreational drugs, it may take some time before they are integrated into regular mental health care.   

“If you asked me five years ago if I would be working with psychedelics, I would have said no,” Ghaznavi says. “But once I looked at the literature and saw the ways in which psychedelics might be used therapeutically, in research studies, and to understand how your mind and brain works, I felt there was an onus to explore these in a rigorous way. I felt like we owed that to our patients.”

So will psilocybin become the next breakthrough treatment for mental illnesses?

Stay in the loop about research going on at Mass General Research Institute and the Center for the Neuroscience of Psychedelics by following our blog and social media.  

About the Mass General Research Institute
Research at Massachusetts General Hospital is interwoven through more than 30 different departments, centers and institutes. Our research includes fundamental, lab-based science; clinical trials to test new drugs, devices and diagnostic tools; and community and population-based research to improve health outcomes across populations and eliminate disparities in care.
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