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Acero VP, Cribas ES, Browne KD, Rivellini O, Burrell JC, O’Donnell JC, Das S, Cullen DK. Bedside to bench: the outlook for psychedelic research. Front Pharmacol 2023; 14:1240295. [PMID: 37869749 PMCID: PMC10588653 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2023.1240295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 10/24/2023] Open
Abstract
There has recently been a resurgence of interest in psychedelic compounds based on studies demonstrating their potential therapeutic applications in treating post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse disorders, and treatment-resistant depression. Despite promising efficacy observed in some clinical trials, the full range of biological effects and mechanism(s) of action of these compounds have yet to be fully established. Indeed, most studies to date have focused on assessing the psychological mechanisms of psychedelics, often neglecting the non-psychological modes of action. However, it is important to understand that psychedelics may mediate their therapeutic effects through multi-faceted mechanisms, such as the modulation of brain network activity, neuronal plasticity, neuroendocrine function, glial cell regulation, epigenetic processes, and the gut-brain axis. This review provides a framework supporting the implementation of a multi-faceted approach, incorporating in silico, in vitro and in vivo modeling, to aid in the comprehensive understanding of the physiological effects of psychedelics and their potential for clinical application beyond the treatment of psychiatric disorders. We also provide an overview of the literature supporting the potential utility of psychedelics for the treatment of brain injury (e.g., stroke and traumatic brain injury), neurodegenerative diseases (e.g., Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases), and gut-brain axis dysfunction associated with psychiatric disorders (e.g., generalized anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder). To move the field forward, we outline advantageous experimental frameworks to explore these and other novel applications for psychedelics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victor P. Acero
- Center for Brain Injury and Repair, Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration and Restoration, Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Department of Bioengineering, School of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Penn Psychedelics Collaborative, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Emily S. Cribas
- Penn Psychedelics Collaborative, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Department of Microbiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Kevin D. Browne
- Center for Brain Injury and Repair, Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration and Restoration, Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Olivia Rivellini
- Center for Brain Injury and Repair, Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration and Restoration, Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Penn Psychedelics Collaborative, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Justin C. Burrell
- Center for Brain Injury and Repair, Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration and Restoration, Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Department of Bioengineering, School of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - John C. O’Donnell
- Center for Brain Injury and Repair, Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration and Restoration, Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Penn Psychedelics Collaborative, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Suradip Das
- Center for Brain Injury and Repair, Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration and Restoration, Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - D. Kacy Cullen
- Center for Brain Injury and Repair, Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration and Restoration, Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Department of Bioengineering, School of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
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Walczak PA, Perez-Esteban P, Bassett DC, Hill EJ. Modelling the central nervous system: tissue engineering of the cellular microenvironment. Emerg Top Life Sci 2021; 5:507-517. [PMID: 34524411 PMCID: PMC8589431 DOI: 10.1042/etls20210245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Revised: 08/16/2021] [Accepted: 08/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
With the increasing prevalence of neurodegenerative diseases, improved models of the central nervous system (CNS) will improve our understanding of neurophysiology and pathogenesis, whilst enabling exploration of novel therapeutics. Studies of brain physiology have largely been carried out using in vivo models, ex vivo brain slices or primary cell culture from rodents. Whilst these models have provided great insight into complex interactions between brain cell types, key differences remain between human and rodent brains, such as degree of cortical complexity. Unfortunately, comparative models of human brain tissue are lacking. The development of induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSCs) has accelerated advancement within the field of in vitro tissue modelling. However, despite generating accurate cellular representations of cortical development and disease, two-dimensional (2D) iPSC-derived cultures lack an entire dimension of environmental information on structure, migration, polarity, neuronal circuitry and spatiotemporal organisation of cells. As such, researchers look to tissue engineering in order to develop advanced biomaterials and culture systems capable of providing necessary cues for guiding cell fates, to construct in vitro model systems with increased biological relevance. This review highlights experimental methods for engineering of in vitro culture systems to recapitulate the complexity of the CNS with consideration given to previously unexploited biophysical cues within the cellular microenvironment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paige A. Walczak
- College of Health and Life Sciences, School of Biosciences, Aston University, Birmingham, U.K
| | - Patricia Perez-Esteban
- College of Health and Life Sciences, School of Biosciences, Aston University, Birmingham, U.K
| | - David C. Bassett
- Healthcare Technologies Institute, School of Chemical Engineering, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, U.K
| | - Eric James Hill
- College of Health and Life Sciences, School of Biosciences, Aston University, Birmingham, U.K
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Gordián-Vélez WJ, Chouhan D, España RA, Chen HI, Burdick JA, Duda JE, Cullen DK. Restoring lost nigrostriatal fibers in Parkinson's disease based on clinically-inspired design criteria. Brain Res Bull 2021; 175:168-185. [PMID: 34332016 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2021.07.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2021] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 07/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disease affecting around 10 million people worldwide. The death of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra and the axonal fibers that constitute the nigrostriatal pathway leads to a loss of dopamine in the striatum that causes the motor symptoms of this disease. Traditional treatments have focused on reducing symptoms, while therapies with human fetal or stem cell-derived neurons have centered on implanting these cells in the striatum to restore its innervation. An alternative approach is pathway reconstruction, which aims to rebuild the entire structure of neurons and axonal fibers of the nigrostriatal pathway in a way that matches its anatomy and physiology. This type of repair could be more capable of reestablishing the signaling mechanisms that ensure proper dopamine release in the striatum and regulation of other motor circuit regions in the brain. In this manuscript, we conduct a review of the literature related to pathway reconstruction as a treatment for Parkinson's disease, delve into the limitations of these studies, and propose the requisite design criteria to achieve this goal at a human scale. We then present our tissue engineering-based platform to fabricate hydrogel-encased dopaminergic axon tracts in vitro for later implantation into the brain to replace and reconstruct the pathway. These tissue-engineered nigrostriatal pathways (TE-NSPs) can be characterized and optimized for cell number and phenotype, axon growth lengths and rates, and the capacity for synaptic connectivity and dopamine release. We then show original data of advances in creating these constructs matching clinical design criteria using human iPSC-derived dopaminergic neurons and a hyaluronic acid hydrogel. We conclude with a discussion of future steps that are needed to further optimize human-scale TE-NSPs and translate them into clinical products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wisberty J Gordián-Vélez
- Department of Bioengineering, School of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States; Center for Brain Injury & Repair, Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States; Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration & Restoration, Corporal Michael Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Dimple Chouhan
- Center for Brain Injury & Repair, Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States; Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration & Restoration, Corporal Michael Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Rodrigo A España
- Department of Neurobiology & Anatomy, College of Medicine, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - H Isaac Chen
- Center for Brain Injury & Repair, Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States; Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration & Restoration, Corporal Michael Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Jason A Burdick
- Department of Bioengineering, School of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - John E Duda
- Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States; Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration & Restoration, Corporal Michael Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - D Kacy Cullen
- Department of Bioengineering, School of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States; Center for Brain Injury & Repair, Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States; Center for Neurotrauma, Neurodegeneration & Restoration, Corporal Michael Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, United States.
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