2024-09-18 ScienceDaily Psychedelics

When serotonin dims the light

Signals in our brain are not always processed in the same way: certain receptors modulate these mechanisms, influencing our mood, perception, and behavior in various ways. One of these is the 5-HT2A receptor, which has a recently discovered unique characteristic: it dampens incoming visual information, giving our brain more space for internal processes and interpretations. This discovery could also help explain the effects of drugs like LSD. When this receptor is overactivated, external sensory input is suppressed, and the brain generates more internally-driven images.

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