Psychedelic science and the therapeutic potential of psilocybin
A talk with Dr David Erritzoe
On Thursday Dec 5th, a meeting of the London Neuropsychoanalysis Group will be held from 6-8pm in Room G03 of the UCL Department of Experimental Psychology at 26 Bedford Way, Bloomsbury, London, WC1H 0AP. The talk is free to attend and open to the public.
The speaker
Dr David Erritzoe MRCPsych PhD,
Academic Clinical Lecturer in the Neuropsychopharmacology Unit & Centre for Psychedelic Research,
Dept. of Psychiatry, Imperial College London
About the topic
The resurrection of psychedelic treatment in psychiatry has been occasioned by several factors. These include the studies at John Hopkins University demonstrating that a single dose of psilocybin could produce long term changes in wellbeing. Secondly, ceremonial use of ayahuasca as well as psilocybin experiences in real life settings have gained new popularity. Finally, a resurgence of neuroscience-based research is now shedding light on the mechanisms of actions of these drugs, such as the work pursued by our team at Imperial, that of scientists in Zurich, and more lately also via pharmacological imaging studies in Copenhagen. Dr Erritzoe’s talk will discuss how these different approaches can be reconciled with a view to work towards having these substances fully tested and integrated into modern psychiatry. Imperial psychedelic brain imaging as well as lab-based and survey clinical data – with a focus on depression – will be presented.
About the speaker
David qualified as a medical doctor at Copenhagen University Medical School in 2001 and currently holds an Academic Clinical Lectureship in Psychiatry at Imperial College London. Alongside his clinical training in medicine/psychiatry, David has been involved in psychopharmacological research, using brain-imaging techniques such as PET and MRI. Initially working at Columbia University in New York, he then undertook a PhD at University Hospital Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen. Since 2009, under the mentorships of Profs Anne Lingford-Hughes and David Nutt at Imperial College London, he has conducted post-doc imaging research in the neurobiology of addictions and major depression. Together with Prof Nutt and Dr Carhart-Harris he is also investigating the neurobiology and therapeutic potential of MDMA and classic psychedelics.
About the location
The UCL building at 26 Bedford Way WC1H 0AP is at the corner of Gordon Square and Bedford way, just between Gordon Square and Tavistock Square Gardens.