Scientists Create Trip-Free , LSD-Based Drugs to Potentially , Treat Anxiety and Depression.<br />While psychedelics like magic mushrooms or LSD can act as powerful antidepressants, they can also cause vivid hallucinations that limit their use.<br />While psychedelics like magic mushrooms or LSD can act as powerful antidepressants, they can also cause vivid hallucinations that limit their use.<br />NPR reports that scientists have synthesized a new <br />drug based on LSD that can relieve anxiety and <br />depression without the mind-bending side effects.<br />We found our compounds <br />had essentially the same <br />antidepressant activity <br />as psychedelic drugs, Dr. Bryan Roth, study author and a professor of pharmacology <br />at UNC Chapel Hill School of Medicine, via NPR.<br />NPR reports that the discovery could lead <br />to faster-acting medications for anxiety that <br />have fewer side effects and last longer.<br />NPR reports that the discovery could lead <br />to faster-acting medications for anxiety that <br />have fewer side effects and last longer.<br />A large team of scientists focused on molecules <br />that impact the brain's serotonin system, <br />which plays a huge role in regulating moods.<br />Ultimately, the team selected two<br />molecules that were "extremely effective" <br />at relieving depression in mice.<br />NPR reports that the team still <br />needs to refine the new molecules <br />before they can be tested on people.<br />If the approach proves successful in humans, <br />it would help overcome a major obstacle for <br />using psychedelics to treat depression.<br />According to David E. Olson, a chemical neuroscientist at the University of California, drugs based on psychedelics , "take us a step closer to a cure, rather than simply treating disease symptoms." .<br />According to David E. Olson, a chemical neuroscientist at the University of California, drugs based on psychedelics , "take us a step closer to a cure, rather than simply treating disease symptoms." .<br />The team's findings <br />were published in <br />the journal 'Nature.'
