Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 11, 2025

Non-invasive Strategies for Chronic Manipulation of DREADD-controlled Neuronal Activity
Published on: August 25, 2019
Network control energy reductions under DMT relate to serotonin receptors, signal diversity, and subjective
S Parker Singleton1, Christopher Timmermann2, Andrea I Luppi3
1Department of Computational Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA. sps253@cornell.edu.
Abstract:
Psychedelics offer a profound window into the human brain through their robust effects on perception, subjective experience, and brain activity patterns. The serotonergic psychedelic N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) induces a profoundly immersive altered state of consciousness lasting under 20 min, allowing the entire experience to be captured during a single functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scan. Using network control theory, we map energy trajectories of 14 individuals undergoing fMRI during DMT and placebo. We find that global control energy is reduced after DMT injection compared to placebo. Longitudinal trajectories of global control energy correlate with longitudinal trajectories of electroencephalography (EEG) signal diversity (a measure of entropy) and subjective drug intensity ratings. At the regional level, spatial patterns of DMT's effects on these metrics correlate with serotonin 2a receptor density from positron emission tomography (PET) data. Using receptor distribution and pharmacokinetic information, we recapitulate DMT's effects on global control energy trajectories, demonstrating control models can predict pharmacological effects on brain dynamics.
More Related Videos
06:42Continuous Theta Burst Stimulation of the Posterior Medial Frontal Cortex to Experimentally Reduce Ideological Threat Responses
Published on: September 28, 2018
09:55Examining Monosynaptic Connections in Drosophila Using Tetrodotoxin Resistant Sodium Channels
Published on: February 14, 2018
Related Concept Videos
Antidepressant Drugs: MAOIs and Other Agents
Drugs Affecting Neurotransmitter Synthesis
Drugs Affecting Neurotransmitter Release or Uptake
Neurochemical Transmission: Sites of Drug Action
CNS Stimulants: Psychedelic Agents
Altered States of Awareness
The ingestion of substances like stimulants or hallucinogens leads to chemical alterations in the brain...