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From Satiety to Psychiatry: Exploring the Role of GLP-1 Receptor...
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From Satiety to Psychiatry: Exploring the Role of GLP-1 Receptor Agonists in Mental Health, Substance Use and Neuropsychiatric Disorders

A special issue of Brain Sciences (ISSN 2076-3425). This special issue belongs to the section "Neuropharmacology and Neuropathology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 3 October 2025 | Viewed by 1081

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Davide Arillotta

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Guest Editor
Department of Neurosciences, Psychology, Drug Research and Child Health, Section of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Florence, 50121 Florence, Italy
Interests: psychopathology; mental health; clinical toxicology; new psychoactive substances; drug misuse; addiction; craving
Dr. Giuseppe Floresta

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Drug and Health Sciences, University of Catania, 95124 Catania, Italy
Interests: peptide chemistry; organic chemistry; chelating agents; imaging probes; computational chemistry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Fabrizio Schifano

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Psychopharmacology, Drug Misuse and Novel Psychoactive Substances Research Unit, School of Life and Medical Sciences, University of Hertfordshire, Hertfordshire AL10 9AB, UK
Interests: psychopharmacology; addiction; drug misuse; new psychoactive substances
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 (GLP-1) Receptor Agonists, currently used in the treatment of metabolic disorders, have attracted increasing interest for their potential applications in mental health and addiction. These agents have demonstrated the potential to influence mood, cognition, neuroplasticity, craving, and compulsive behaviour, offering novel strategies for therapeutic intervention in neuropsychiatric disorders.

This special issue aims to: 

  • Investigate how GLP-1 analogues influence neurobiological and neurochemical processes;
  • Explore their effects on neuropsychiatric disorders, such as depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders;
  • Assess their potential beneficial effect on mental health and patients' quality of life, including sexual health, in the context of neuropsychiatric comorbidities;
  • Collect recent data on their efficacy and safety in the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders, focussing on both acute and long-term effects;
  • Address their potential neuropsychiatric side effects;
  • Evaluate their potential misuse (e.g., as performance and enhancing drugs);
  • Study their potential use in specific populations (e.g., young people, the elderly, pregnant or breastfeeding women;
  • Compare them with dual GLP/GLP-1 receptor agonists and other classes of appetite suppressants;
  • Hypothesize future directions for research to enhance patients' clinical outcomes (e.g., novel therapeutic areas and integrated strategies.

In this Special Issue, we invite submissions of original research manuscripts, reviews and meta-analyses, case reports, brief reports, opinions, and perspectives. Topics include mental health, addiction and drug misuse, clinical toxicology, and anorexants.

Dr. Davide Arillotta
Dr. Giuseppe Floresta
Prof. Dr. Fabrizio Schifano
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Brain Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs)
  • dual GIP/GLP-1 agonists
  • reward
  • craving
  • behavioral addictions
  • mental health
  • psychiatry
  • substance use disorders
  • semaglutide
  • tirzepatide

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

18 pages, 343 KiB  
Review
Drugs Used in “Chemsex”/Sexualized Drug Behaviour—Overview of the Related Clinical Psychopharmacological Issues
by Fabrizio Schifano, Stefania Bonaccorso, Davide Arillotta, Amira Guirguis, John Martin Corkery, Giuseppe Floresta, Gabriele Duccio Papanti Pelletier, Norbert Scherbaum and Nicolò Schifano
Brain Sci. 2025, 15(5), 424; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci15050424 - 22 Apr 2025
Viewed by 821
Abstract
Background: “Chemsex” involves the intake of a range of drugs (e.g., synthetic cathinones, gamma-hydroxybutyric acid/gamma-butyrolactone (GHB/GBL), ketamine, methamphetamine, “poppers”, type V phosphodiesterase (PDE) inhibitors, MDMA/ecstasy, cocaine, cannabis, and occasionally a few other molecules as well, to enhance and prolong sexual experiences. This [...] Read more.
Background: “Chemsex” involves the intake of a range of drugs (e.g., synthetic cathinones, gamma-hydroxybutyric acid/gamma-butyrolactone (GHB/GBL), ketamine, methamphetamine, “poppers”, type V phosphodiesterase (PDE) inhibitors, MDMA/ecstasy, cocaine, cannabis, and occasionally a few other molecules as well, to enhance and prolong sexual experiences. This paper aims to provide an overview of the clinical pharmacology of the vast range of drugs that are being used for chemsex with a focus on both the medical and psychopathological disturbances that they can produce. Methods: A narrative literature review was conducted using Pubmed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. A total of 273 papers published up to January 2025 were screened; articles were selected based on relevance to chemsex/sexualized used behaviour and related substances. Both human and preclinical studies were considered. Results: The use of stimulants is likely related to the need to increase as much as possible both sexual arousal and performance but also to increase social interactions. Furthermore, the empathogenic/entactogenic activities of some MDMA-like “love drugs” facilitate the occurrence of “feeling closer/more intimate” emotional sensations, and GHB/GBL may provide the user with a subjective sensation of disinhibition, hence facilitating condomless meetings with a higher number of random partners. Conversely, ketamine may be used to both enjoy its psychotropic dissociative characteristics and facilitate the potentially painful receptive anal intercourse and/or fisting experiences. Most typically, these drugs are consumed in combination, with polydrug exposure possibly facilitating the occurrence of serotonergic syndrome, seizures, drug–drug pharmacokinetics’ interaction, and sympathomimetic overstimulation. Following these polydrug exposures, a range of psychopathological conditions have at times been reported. These issues may lead to misuse of opiates/opioids, gabapentinoids, and/or antipsychotics. Conclusions: Further actions should aim at reducing the stigma that prevents individuals from accessing necessary healthcare and support services. A multidisciplinary approach that combines medical, psychological, and social support remains key to managing the complex challenges posed by chemsex-related drug use. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Satiety to Psychiatry: Exploring the Role of GLP-1 Receptor Agonists in Mental Health, Substance Use and Neuropsychiatric Disorders)
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