Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41122434›Full record

ReviewTherapeutic advances in psychopharmacology2025

Biological markers of treatment response to serotonergic psychedelic therapies: a systematic review.

Stanley Wong, Brett D M Jones, Mathura T Thiyagarajah, Sami G Sabbah, Chase Thompson, Marco Solmi, Madeha Umer, Christoph Zrenner, Daphne Voineskos, Joshua D Rosenblat and 3 more

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Therapeutic advances in psychopharmacology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Stanley WongCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7316-5370
Brett D M JonesCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 101 Stoke St, Toronto, ON M6J 1H4, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3248-1059
Mathura T ThiyagarajahDepartment of Psychiatry, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, ON, Canada.
Sami G SabbahUniversity of Ottawa, Medicine, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Chase ThompsonDepartment of Psychiatry, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, ON, Canada.
Marco SolmiSchool of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Madeha UmerCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Christoph ZrennerCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Daphne VoineskosCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Joshua D RosenblatSchool of Medicine, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4773-2191
Benoit H MulsantCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Daniel M BlumbergerCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Muhammad Ishrat HusainCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Results from contemporary clinical trials of serotonergic psychedelic therapies have led to an increasing focus on their potential clinical use across mental disorders. However, studies examining mechanisms of clinical response to psychedelic therapy in psychiatric populations are limited. This review aimed to synthesize evidence from studies examining biomarkers of clinical response to psychedelic therapies. Data sources and methods: A systematic search of four databases (MedLine, PsycInfo, EMBASE, and Web of Science) for studies investigating treatment response to psychedelic therapies in psychiatric populations that included both clinical outcomes and a related biomarker was conducted on January 10, 2024. Studies were included if they reported on prospective clinical trials involving the use of a psychedelic in participants diagnosed with any Diagnostic and Statistical Manual or International Classification of Diseases mental disorder, where a biological marker was measured and evaluated in association with treatment response. Results: Nine studies investigating the effects of Ayahuasca and psilocybin in major depressive disorder and treatment-resistant depression were included in this review. Several potential biomarkers of response were explored through neuroimaging and blood samples, with significant associations found for serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor, serum C-reactive protein, cerebral activation of the amygdala, and functional connectivity between regions such as the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and posterior cingulate cortex. Conclusion: Results of small studies suggest associations between several putative biomarkers and treatment response to psychedelic therapies. Future trials of psychedelic therapies should integrate biomarker assessment in longitudinal designs to advance the understanding of their mechanism of action in mental disorders. Trial registration: This study protocol was registered to PROSPERO under the number CRD42021291171.

Indexed as

biomarkersmajor depressive disordermental disordersneuroimagingpsychedelics

Identifiers

PMID41122434
PMCPMC12536141

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.