Serotonin biology as a basis for explaining psychedelic drug action

Paper. Knox CA, Li-Wu A, Kwan AC. Current Biology, 5 Oct 2026.

Tags: Review.

Weekly Science Digest, 3 Oct 2026 to 9 Oct 2026, finding 3: LSD speeds rhythms up rather than just damping them

MEG shows LSD shifts alpha and beta peak frequencies upward, not merely weakens oscillations.

Source-resolved recordings under LSD versus placebo separate genuine power loss from peak-frequency drift, and add a flattened 1/f slope plus increased signal fractality. The changes concentrate in sensory, language and imagery networks and spare motor cortex.

How much weight it carries: Within-subject placebo-controlled MEG in a small healthy sample; characterises the acute drug state, says nothing about therapeutic effect. (Humans, Placebo-controlled, Brain imaging, Mechanism, Small sample)

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