Ketamine Brain Psychedelics A recent study involving computational modeling by researchers from four Boston institutions has provided new insights into how ketamine affects brain function, particularly in treatment-resistant depression. By detailing the drug’s interaction with NMDA receptors in the brain’s cortex and simulating its impact on neural activity, the research offers a clearer understanding of the mechanisms behind ketamine’s altered arousal states and potential therapeutic benefits. The findings could lead to more effective clinical applications and a better grasp of the drug’s broader effects on brain network dynamics. New research explores how ketamine’s effects on single neurons contribute to significant alterations in the functioning of brain networks.
Ketamine, recognized as an Essential Medicine by the World Health Organization, is utilized for a variety of purposes including sedation, pain management, general anesthesia, and treating treatment-resistant depression. Although its effects on brain-wide activity and its target within brain cells are known, the connection between these aspects has been unclear. A recent study conducted by researchers across four institutions in the Boston area employs computational modeling to explore previously overlooked physiological details. This research provides fresh insights into the mechanisms of how ketamine operates.
“This modeling work has helped decipher likely mechanisms through which ketamine produces altered arousal states as well as its therapeutic benefits for treating depression,” co-senior author Emery N. Brown, Edward Hood Taplin Professor of Computational Neuroscience and Medical Engineering at The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at MIT, as well as an anesthesiologist at MGH and a Professor at Harvard Medical School.
The researchers from MIT, Boston University, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Harvard University said the predictions of their model, published May 20 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , could help physicians make better use of the drug.
“When physicians understand what’s mechanistically happening when they administer a drug, they can possibly leverage that mechanism and manipulate it,” said study lead author Elie Adam, a Research Scientist at MIT who will soon join the Harvard Medical School faculty and launch a lab at MGH. “They gain a sense of how to enhance the good effects of the […]
Ketamine Decoded: New Study Sheds Light on Its Powerful Brain and Mood Effects
