Psychedelics and their potential for treating mental health disorders.
Share
Scientists today are entering a new era of study of a truly unique class of pharmacological compounds known as psychedelics. Although research into these compounds began in the 1950s and 1960s, it ended abruptly in the early 1970s in response to unfavorable media coverage, resulting in misperceptions of risk and highly restrictive regulations.
After a hiatus of decades, in 2000, our research group at Johns Hopkins was the first to obtain regulatory approval in the United States to restart psychedelic research in healthy, psychedelic-naive volunteers. Our 2006 publication on the safety and lasting positive effects of a single dose of psilocybin is widely considered the landmark study that sparked a renewal of psychedelic research worldwide.
Since then, we have published more groundbreaking studies in over 150 peer-reviewed articles in respected scientific journals. This makes Johns Hopkins the leading psychedelic research institution in the U.S. and among the few leading groups worldwide. Our research is investigating the therapeutic effects in people suffering from a range of challenging conditions, including addiction (smoking, alcohol, and other drugs of abuse), existential distress caused by life-threatening illness, major depressive disorder, anorexia nervosa, post-treatment Lyme disease, depression associated with Alzheimer's disease, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Studying healthy volunteers has also advanced our understanding of the lasting positive effects of psilocybin and provided unique insight into the neurophysiological mechanisms of action.
At the Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research, our mission is to answer the most important questions in psychedelic research, therapy, and clinical education, and to expand the field of psychedelic science in collaboration with the world's leading multidisciplinary scientists. We will conduct rigorous clinical trials that adhere to the highest ethical standards while elucidating the underlying mechanisms that drive psychedelic effects and therapeutic efficacy. We will provide evidence-based education to clinicians and the wider community to contribute to the development of innovative therapeutic approaches that benefit individuals and society.