PTSD or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a disorder that develops in people who experience very shocking, scary, or dangerous events. Symptoms of this disorder can develop within a month of the event, or even show up many years later. There are four different kinds of symptoms for PTSD, that include intrusive memories, avoidance, negative mood, and changes in physical/emotional behavior. Intrusive memories are recurring distressing memories of the traumatic event. These memories can cause a flashback scenario where the person feels they are back in the event. These memories can hinder the life of a person with PTSD greatly, and there are studies being put into place to help treat these symptoms.
In the research paper, “Odor modulates the temporal dynamics of fear memory consolidation”, by Grella et al. conducts experiments with fear conditioned mice and odor being a cue for memory recall. It is discussed that a single scent can produce a vivid memory of the past, similar to how someone with PTSD would feel when having a flashback. This study was aiming to see if it was possible to use an odor conditioned to be associated with a fear memory to produce a fear response in mice. Being able to understand how fear memory is consolidated, can help to produce a path to treating this fear associated with memories. The researchers found in this study that olfaction is directly related to memory consolidation, and that an odor can stimulate a PTSD response. Since odor can cause a fear memory, then odor can also cause a pleasant memory, which is a way a patient with PTSD could be treated, by implementing a new memory associated with the smell that once produced a fear response.
The article, “MDMA-assisted therapy for severe PTSD: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 3 study” by Mitchell et al. is studying how MDMA can improve symptoms of PTSD. Serotonin is a key factor to fear memory consolidation, the less serotonin that is present, the more fear and anxiety there will be in an individual. MDMA produces a great amount of serotonin in the brain, in this study they found that MDMA enhances the extinction of fear memories, which is helpful for PTSD.
Relating the two articles, an individual could be given an odor stimulus that is related to a pleasant memory, and this pleasant memory will produce serotonin in the brain. Now if an individual with PTSD, relates a certain smell to a bad memory, this same smell could be changed to represent a new pleasant memory, with the aid of MDMA or other psychoactive drugs. This new research can be used to improve PTSD symptoms, and aid in the lives of people all across the world, since PTSD is such a common and mentally painful disorder. It would be amazing to see this research make an impact on the world soon.
References
Grella, S. L., Fortin, A. H., McKissick, O., Leblanc, H., & Ramirez, S. (2019). Odor modulates the temporal dynamics of fear memory consolidation. https://doi.org/10.1101/2019.12.19.881615
Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2018, July 6). Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Mayo Clinic. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/post-traumatic-stress-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20355967
Mitchell, J. M., Bogenschutz, M., Lilienstein, A., Harrison, C., Kleiman, S., Parker-Guilbert, K., Ot’alora G., M., Garas, W., Paleos, C., Gorman, I., Nicholas, C., Mithoefer, M., Carlin, S., Poulter, B., Mithoefer, A., Quevedo, S., Wells, G., Klaire, S. S., van der Kolk, B., … Doblin, R. (2021, May 10). MDMA-Assisted therapy for severe PTSD: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 3 study. Nature News. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-021-01336-3
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