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Skeletal editing by iron-catalyzed carbene insertion of trichloromethanes DeMuynck and colleagues describe a new, iron-catalyzed method for carbene insertion of trichloromethanes into a diverse range of indoles. By harnessing commercially available trichloromethane reagents...

Read about #UCDavisIPN Director @deolsonlab.bsky.social and his team's latest research published in @cellpress.bsky.social. With the labs of David Nagib and Mark Levin, the team utilized a new method of skeletal editing to convert LSD into a new analogue with lower hallucinogenic potential.

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Why Do Mind-Altering Drugs Make People Feel Better? Scientists want to redesign psychedelics so that they don’t induce a trip—but they still improve mental health.

#UCDavisIPN Director @deolsonlab.bsky.social and Assoc. Director John Gray, are featured in a new @newyorker.com article exploring the science behind why mind-altering drugs (and non-hallucinogenic #psychedelic analogues) can have lasting therapeutic effects.

Read the story here:

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Feasibility and safety of cellular therapy for in-utero repair of myelomeningocele (CuRe Trial): a first-in-human, phase 1, single-arm study This first-in-human treatment consisting of allogeneic, live stem cells showed no cell-related adverse effects. The therapy was assessed as sufficiently safe to proceed with non-staggered enrolment of...

#UCDavisIPN affiliate Aijun Wang and his team have published first-in-human results in @thelancet.com demonstrating the safety of a novel stem cell therapy delivered before birth for spina bifida.

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Prototyping Minimal Extracellular Vesicle Mimetics Using Cell-Free Synthesis The many surface proteins on extracellular vesicles (EVs) allow them to target recipient cells and modulate cellular responses. Despite their importance, relating surface protein and EV function is challenging due to surface protein heterogeneity. Here, we create a bottom-up, cell-free protein-synthesis platform to engineer artificial nanovesicles (ANVs) that display different EV surface protein domains. The platform is termed VESSEL (Vesicle Engineering Systems using Synthetic Expression and Loading). The surface proteins are selected based on proteomics data of native EVs from placental mesenchymal stem cells (PMSCs). To create VESSEL, we establish a protein anchor based on the bacteria membrane protein Aquaporin-Z. This anchor allows the flexible and cell-free protein synthesis of 39 different EV surface protein domains, each anchoring into more than 108 ANVs per μL. Furthermore, we measure the ANVs using high-fidelity assays, including single-ANV flow cytometry, super-resolution imaging, and vesicle-based ELISA. Next, we show the impact of each EV surface protein on cellular uptake. Specifically, we find that certain EV surface protein domains govern ANV uptake into HEK293FT cells, explaining the variable observations in the field. We discovered new proteins, such as CADM1 and NPTN, that mediate high-efficiency cellular uptake. Additionally, five proteins were selected for our neuroprotection assay, where three proteins were significant in increasing SH-SY5Y neurite growth. Our work demonstrates a high-throughput cell-free synthesis platform for studying surface proteins of EVs. It enables the systematic interrogation of EV’s function as “signalosomes” and facilitates the designing of well-defined EV mimetics to mediate cellular function.

#UCDavisIPN Affiliate Aijun Wang and his team released a new study in @acs.org - Nano highlighting how engineering simplified extracellular vesicle mimetics can help uncover which surface proteins actually drive neuroprotective effects. 1/2

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State Sen. Jesse Salomon Wants to Bring Ibogaine Therapy to Washington State Sen. Jesse Salomon, Washington's mushrooms legislator, wants to broaden the state's psychedelic horizons with Ibogaine therapy, a drug that supposedly acts as an almost miracle balm for psychic ...

#UCDavisIPN Director @deolsonlab.bsky.social on efforts to bring ibogaine therapy to WA State: The potential for treating #addiction, #PTSD, and #TBI is compelling, but federal legality and limited clinical data remain real barriers. Promising therapies still need rigorous science and safety first.

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Structural basis for the subtype-selectivity of KCa2.2 channel activators - Nature Communications Activators of KCa2.2 channels constitute potential novel treatments for neurologic disorders. Here, authors report cryo-EM structures of activator-bound channels, providing a framework for structure-b...

New in @natureportfolio.nature.com - Communications from #UCDavisIPN Affiliate Heike Wulff: Researchers report the first high-resolution cryo-EM structures explaining how small-molecule activators selectively target the KCa2.2 potassium channel.

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Stress & Psilocybin: Effects on Maternal Care & Offspring Development | Danielle Stolzenberg | 270 Neurobiology of maternal care in mammals: hormonal influences, stress effects & a study on psilocybin's unexpected effects during the postpartum period.

#UCDavisIPN affiliate Danielle Stolzenberg spoke with the Mind & Matter podcast about the neurobiology of maternal care and her research on psilocybin exposure during the postpartum period. Check it out!

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Creating Hallucination-free, Psychedelic-like Molecules by Shining Light on Life’s Basic Building Blocks UC Davis researchers have developed a new method that uses light to transform amino acids — the building blocks of proteins — into molecules that are similar in structure to psychedelics and mimic the...

Check out the new research from #UCDavisIPN trainees Joseph Beckett and Trey Brasher, introducing a light-driven way to convert amino acids into psychedelic-inspired molecules. These compounds engage the serotonin system and may represent a new class of non-hallucinogenic neurotherapeutics.

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2025 Leading Research Achievements | Brain & Behavior Research Foundation We are pleased to present you with the 2025 Leading Research Achievements by BBRF Grantees, Prize Winners & Scientific Council Members.

Congratulations to #UCDavisIPN Affiliate and Brain and Behavior Research Foundation grant recipient Alex Nord and the team behind JRT, a non-hallucinogenic analogue of LSD. Their work has been named one of BBRF’s leading research achievements of 2025.

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Transdiagnostic reduction in cortical choline-containing compounds in anxiety disorders: a 1H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy meta-analysis - Molecular Psychiatry Molecular Psychiatry - Transdiagnostic reduction in cortical choline-containing compounds in anxiety disorders: a 1H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy meta-analysis

#UCDavisIPN affiliate Richard Maddock published a meta-analysis that identified a difference in brain choline levels in people with anxiety versus those without. Maddock's team found that brain choline levels in people with anxiety were 8% lower than their non-anxious peers.

Read the paper here:

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Transforming Amino Acids into Serotonin 5-HT2A Receptor Ligands Using Photochemistry A light-induced cyclization via a radical spin-center shift process that results in the direct functionalization of the indole ring at the C4-position is developed into a practical method for the synt...

#UCDavisIPN Affiliates and Ph.D. students Joseph Beckett and Trey Brasher, together with their research advisor and senior author Mark Mascal, have published new research in the Journal of the American Chemical Society using a light-driven chemical reaction to make psychedelic-inspired molecules.

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LSD for anxiety and depression? Some early studies show promise. Researchers are investigating whether the drug could be used in mainstream medicine—with and without its hallucinatory effects.

Check out NatGeo's story on LSD as a treatment for anxiety and #depression. In the piece, #UCDavisIPN Director, @deolsonlab.bsky.social, highlights how JRT, the IPN's non-hallucinogenic #psychedelic analogue of LSD, "could be a game-changer" for expanding access to mental health treatments.

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The Transmitter’s Rising Stars of Neuroscience 2025 We recognize the outstanding achievements of 25 neuroscientists who stand to shape the field for years to come.

@thetransmitter.bsky.social named #UCDavisIPN affiliate @doctheagrif.bsky.social and former affiliate @tinakim-neuro.bsky.social as rising stars in the field of #neuroscience for 2025. Read more about their work on voltage gated ion channels and #psychedelic -responsive neurons here:

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60. Psychedelics Postpartum

Check out #UCDavisIPN Affiliate Danielle Stolzenberg on @drjodipawluski.bsky.social podcast "Mommy Brain Revisited." Danielle discusses just how much we have to learn about #psychedelics as a treatment for the mental health of new mothers and their offspring too. Listen here:

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The buzziest neuroscience papers of 2023, 2024 The field took note of work on brain-computer interfaces for speech, the mechanism of psychedelics, defining hippocampal representations, and more.

#UCDavisIPN Affiliate @baleslab.bsky.social and Directors @deolsonlab.bsky.social and John Gray's teams' works were recognized in @thetransmitter.bsky.social list of the Buzziest Neuroscience Papers. Explore the full list and learn what makes these papers stand out: #Neuroscience #Psychedelics

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We shared earlier this year that zalsupindole, a non-hallucinogenic psychedelic analogue created at @UC Davis by #UCDavisIPN Director @deolsonlab.bsky.social and his team, entered phase1B clinical trials. We are now thrilled to share the results!!

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Check out #UCDavisIPN affiliate @manvir.bsky.social on the debut episode of the @mindsovermatters.bsky.social podcast. He explores shamanism’s deep roots across cultures and how various aspects have echoed through modern societies.

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Zalsupindole is a Nondissociative, Nonhallucinogenic Neuroplastogen with Therapeutic Effects Comparable to Ketamine and Psychedelics Many neuropsychiatric conditions, including depression, involve synaptic loss and atrophy of the prefrontal cortex. The rapid regrowth of cortical neurons has been hypothesized to explain the rapid an...

Read the latest research from Delix on #zalsupindole, a compound invented at the #UCDavisIPN by director @deolsonlab.bsky.social and his team. Zalsupindole, is a non-dissociative, non-hallucinogenic #psychedelic analogue, and is the first neuroplastogen to be administered to patients with MDD!

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#UCDavisIPN Director @deolsonlab.bsky.social and his team studied mice without INMT, an enzyme long thought to be essential for producing endogenous #psychedelics like DMT. The surprise...?

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Psilocybin during the postpartum period induces long-lasting adverse effects in both mothers and offspring - Nature Communications The treatment potential of psilocybin for postpartum depression was investigated in a preclinical mouse model. Here the authors show both acute and long-term effects of psilocybin in mothers and their offspring who were exposed via lactation.

In a new publication from #UCDavisIPN affiliate Danielle Stolzenberg, her team found that postpartum mice given psilocybin showed a long-term increase in anxiety behaviors after a single dose. Even more striking, their offspring experienced similar effects.

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Psychedelic neuroplasticity of cortical neurons lacking 5-HT2A receptors - Molecular Psychiatry Molecular Psychiatry - Psychedelic neuroplasticity of cortical neurons lacking 5-HT2A receptors

Researchers @umich.edu found #psychedelics can boost brain connections even when neurons don’t have the usual 5-HT2A receptor because nearby cells pass the effect along. At #UCDavisIPN, we’re also exploring surprising ways psychedelics reshape the brain.

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UC Davis Institute for Psychedelics & Neurotherapeutics Newsletter Sign up for our newsletter:

Interested in reading more about the IPN? Join our newsletter! We publish each Spring and Fall. We share about our research of course, but you can also get an inside look at what we're all about here at the #UCDavisIPN. Sign up here:

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Scientists find psychedelics stimulate the growth of new synapses in the ear Scientists are exploring the possibilities

IPN collaborator Dr. Uri Manor at
@ucsandiego.bsky.social reveals that #psychedelics as well as non-hallucinogenic analogues developed at the #UCDavisIPN can grow new synapses in the cochlea of mice which could open new horizons for treating age-related hearing loss.

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PNAS Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...

At #UCDavisIPN we’re pursuing similar goals researching LSD analogues like JRT that boost neuroplasticity without hallucinations, a promising path towards addressing unmet needs in neuropsychiatric treatment. #psychedelic

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This unorthodox treatment could help new moms: ‘The tipping point is coming’ Demand is surging among new moms for this once-taboo treatment, and the first trials of a new drug have shown promising results.

#UCDavisIPN affiliate Danielle Stolzenberg, commented on the trial for the @sfchronicle.com: "It’s very encouraging to see PPD represented in the new wave of psychedelic research," though, she shares, "It’s unclear whether psychedelics will be safe during the postpartum period.”

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The psychoplastogen tabernanthalog induces neuroplasticity without proximate immediate early gene activation - Nature Neuroscience Aarrestad et al. show that, in contrast to psychedelics, the nonhallucinogenic psychoplastogen tabernanthalog promotes neuroplasticity through 5-HT2AR activation without immediately increasing extrace...

The field of psychedelic science is finally closer to an answer on how non-hallucinogenic psychedelic analogues induce neuroplasticity.  Read the new publication from the #UCDavisIPN in @natureportfolio.nature.com Neuroscience about how the team uncovered this using TBG, lasers, and genetic tools.

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A New Drug Could Revolutionize Treating Mental Health | The Lisa Wexler Show

#UCDavisIPN Director @deolsonlab.bsky.social spoke with Lisa Wexler from the Voice of Connecticut about JRT, a non-hallucinogenic #psychedelic analogue with potential to treat schizophrenia.

🔗 Listen to David's segment on The Lisa Wexler Show here or anywhere you get your podcasts:

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Choroid plexus apocrine secretion shapes CSF proteome during mouse brain development - PubMed The choroid plexus (ChP) regulates cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) composition, providing essential molecular cues for brain development; yet, embryonic ChP secretory mechanisms remain poorly defined. Here ...

#UCDavisIPN Affiliate @sadeghlab.bsky.social co-authored a new @natureportfolio.nature.com paper revealing how maternal exposure to 5-HT2C agonists can cause the choroid plexus to secrete proteins into cerebrospinal fluid, affecting fetal brain development and behavior into adulthood. Read more:

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Manvir Singh @ The Yolo County Library Davis' Local Independent Bookstore since 1987

Meet us at the Davis Public Library in Davis on May 29th for IPN Affiliate @manvir.bsky.social's author talk on "Shamanism: The Timeless Religion." Register for the event, hosted by the Avid Reader, using the link below.

Where: 315 E. 14th Street, Davis, CA 95616
Time: 6:30PM
#shamanism #UCDavisIPN

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Shamanism by Manvir Singh: 9780593537541 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books From a brilliant, young, Harvard-trained anthropologist and contributor to The New Yorker comes a fascinating investigation into the spiritual practice of shamanism, from its beginnings to the present...

Now available: Shamanism: The Timeless Religion written by IPN Affiliate @manvir.bsky.social. Manvir's work cuts through myths and binaries, exploring the deeper meaning behind our fascination with shamanism and ancient ways of knowing.

Order your copy now:

#UCDavisIPN #shamanism

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