The Heifets Laboratory
Welcome to the Heifets Lab
Our research group is dedicated to understanding and improving on powerful, rapid-acting therapies for psychiatric disease, such as ketamine, MDMA and psilocybin. We bridge basic science and clinical trials, connecting neuroscience, psychiatry and anesthesiology in pursuit of highly effective, safe treatment strategies scalable to the millions of patients who need them.
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New preprint led by @christineliuart! How do psychedelics improve cognitive flexibility? Psilocybin prevents inflexibility caused by aberrant mesocortical error signaling (but not other mechanisms); this is tied to plasticity of PFC-MD thalamus neurons:
Psilocybin selectively rescues cognitive flexibility impairments caused by aberrant prefrontal...
Psychedelic drugs show remarkable potential for treating psychiatric disorders, but the mechanisms underlying their therap...
www.biorxiv.org
@Psyched_Alpha This is amazing —there is broad support on both sides of this issue. It would be wonderful if a small % was devoted to understanding how they work
#psychedelics
We're still a ways out from the abstract deadline, but just a bump to re-advertise this great GRS that I'm co-chairing. Consciousness science is still wide open, and we intend to showcase as much of the new and interesting work in the field as we can.
https://www.grc.org/consciousness-anesthesia-and-evolutionary-biology-grs-conference/2027/
New in @AmJPsychiatry — personally I think this is my best paper so far. Highest statistical rigor, strongest causal inference (via a series of natural experiments), and multiple clinical applications.
Thanks @KJBinSTL and team tagged below.
https://psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.ajp.20250198
Intermittent #ThetaBurst stimulation targeting the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex enhanced placebo-induced mood improvement by potentiating default mode network activity in adults with depressive symptoms.
Theta Burst Stimulation of the Dorsomedial PFC and Mood Effects
This randomized clinical trial investigates if neuromodulation can harness antidepressant placebo effects by potentiating ...
ja.ma
tenure time 🍾
The positive topline results from our Phase 3 Emerge clinical trial represent more than a company milestone, they reflect growing momentum toward potential new treatment possibilities for people living with major depressive disorder (MDD).
Hear from Emerge Principal Investigator
Ketamine's noticeable side effects can make it difficult to know whether improvements in pain and depression come from the drug itself or from patients knowing they received it. In an early study, researchers tested a new approach using the sedative propofol to keep participants
