Advances in Precision Medicine Boost Research on Psychedelics
Precision medicine is a relatively new field in medical technology that has allowed doctors to peer even deeper into the human body, thus broadening the horizons of medical treatments significantly. This groundbreaking technology is now being paired with psychedelics to boost psychedelic research and development. At the moment, however, most psychedelic research is centered on how these substances target and affect the serotonin 2A receptor in the brain.
This receptor is associated with neuropsychiatric disorders and mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and chronic depression, and the receptor is often targeted during the treatment of such conditions.
The National Cancer Institute defines precision medicine as treatments where the prevention, diagnosis and care of disease is tailored to and guided by every patient’s genetic profile. This includes targeted therapies that are used to treat certain kinds of cancer cells and diagnosing cancer using tumor markers.
Precision or personalized medicine could essentially allow scientists and doctors to build a framework containing a massive database of information about the mechanisms of different diseases and their subtypes. A framework such as this would also allow caregivers to prescribe personalized treatments that are customized for every patient.
So how can precision medicine be paired with psychedelic drugs?
Researchers are using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to get a clearer idea of how psychedelics such as LSD and psilocybin affect the brain. They are also relying on molecular imaging studies with single-photon emission computer tomography (SPECT) or positron emission tomography (PET) to see how specific hallucinogenic compounds interact with the brain.
Researchers are also working to develop better ways to use personalized treatments to understand the long-term effects of psychedelic treatment. During prior research, researchers tested a personalized treatment approach that used psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAP) in conjunction with virtual reality (VR).
Integrating virtual reality with the psychedelic treatment allowed the researchers to reduce the psychological side effects of the treatment by inducing relaxation, encouraging introspection and reinforcing resilience, the researchers wrote.
Beckley Psytech Limited, a private company that uses psychedelics to address neurological and psychiatric disorders, has partnered with digital biomarker and medical wearable company, Empatica Inc., to offer patients living with neurological disorders continuous, passive and unobtrusive monitoring.
The data collected will be used in a study to see whether using a psychedelic called 5-MeO-DMT alongside psychotherapy can have a positive impact on patients with treatment-resistant depression.
Technology and healthcare services company Ehave, Inc. has also announced that it will leverage precision medicine to improve patient outcomes via its subsidiary KetaDASH and in partnership with HaluGen Life Sciences Inc., a genetic-based psychedelics prescreening platform.
All this research adds onto what early entrants such as Cybin Inc. (NYSE American: CYBN) (NEO: CYBN) are doing to advance their drug-development programs. Patients and the society in general will be the net beneficiary once all these efforts yield approved medicines.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Cybin Inc. (NEO: CYBN) (NYSE American: CYBN) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/CYBN
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the PsychedelicNewsWire website applicable to all content provided by PNW, wherever published or re-published: https://www.PsychedelicNewsWire.com/Disclaimer
Precision medicine is a relatively new field in medical technology that has allowed doctors to peer even deeper into the human body, thus broadening the horizons of medical treatments significantly. This groundbreaking technology is now being paired with psychedelics to boost psychedelic research and development. At the moment, however, most psychedelic research is centered on how these substances target and affect the serotonin 2A receptor in the brain.
This receptor is associated with neuropsychiatric disorders and mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and chronic depression, and the receptor is often targeted during the treatment of such conditions.
The National Cancer Institute defines precision medicine as treatments where the prevention, diagnosis and care of disease is tailored to and guided by every patient’s genetic profile. This includes targeted therapies that are used to treat certain kinds of cancer cells and diagnosing cancer using tumor markers.
Precision or personalized medicine could essentially allow scientists and doctors to build a framework containing a massive database of information about the mechanisms of different diseases and their subtypes. A framework such as this would also allow caregivers to prescribe personalized treatments that are customized for every patient.
So how can precision medicine be paired with psychedelic drugs?
Researchers are using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to get a clearer idea of how psychedelics such as LSD and psilocybin affect the brain. They are also relying on molecular imaging studies with single-photon emission computer tomography (SPECT) or positron emission tomography (PET) to see how specific hallucinogenic compounds interact with the brain.
Researchers are also working to develop better ways to use personalized treatments to understand the long-term effects of psychedelic treatment. During prior research, researchers tested a personalized treatment approach that used psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAP) in conjunction with virtual reality (VR).
Integrating virtual reality with the psychedelic treatment allowed the researchers to reduce the psychological side effects of the treatment by inducing relaxation, encouraging introspection and reinforcing resilience, the researchers wrote.
Beckley Psytech Limited, a private company that uses psychedelics to address neurological and psychiatric disorders, has partnered with digital biomarker and medical wearable company, Empatica Inc., to offer patients living with neurological disorders continuous, passive and unobtrusive monitoring.
The data collected will be used in a study to see whether using a psychedelic called 5-MeO-DMT alongside psychotherapy can have a positive impact on patients with treatment-resistant depression.
Technology and healthcare services company Ehave, Inc. has also announced that it will leverage precision medicine to improve patient outcomes via its subsidiary KetaDASH and in partnership with HaluGen Life Sciences Inc., a genetic-based psychedelics prescreening platform.
All this research adds onto what early entrants such as Cybin Inc. (NYSE American: CYBN) (NEO: CYBN) are doing to advance their drug-development programs. Patients and the society in general will be the net beneficiary once all these efforts yield approved medicines.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Cybin Inc. (NEO: CYBN) (NYSE American: CYBN) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/CYBN
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the PsychedelicNewsWire website applicable to all content provided by PNW, wherever published or re-published: https://www.PsychedelicNewsWire.com/Disclaimer
