Bio: Ben Rein, PhD is a postdoctoral scholar in Dr. Robert Malenka’s lab at Stanford University. He is currently studying the neural basis of empathy and how drugs such as MDMA act in the brain to enhance social connection. Dr. Rein’s previous research examined genetic risk factors for autism spectrum disorder and identified key systems in the brain that regulate social interactions. He has authored 17 peer-reviewed scientific papers and received research honors from the NIH, the Society for Neuroscience, and Sigma Xi. Outside of the lab, he also creates educational science videos for an audience of more than 900,000 social media followers. In his videos, he summarizes research papers, teaches neuroscience principles, and debunks viral videos containing misinformation. Dr. Rein’s videos have been featured on Good Morning America, he has been interviewed in Popular Mechanics, and served as an expert consultant for Entertainment Tonight. He has received science communication-related grants from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting and the Mind Science Foundation, and been recognized with awards from the American Association for the Advancement of Science and Stanford University.

Abstract: As interest in the potential of psilocybin-assisted therapy to treat mental health disorders continues to grow, there is a critical need for a more efficient and effective method of producing this promising therapy. The current methods for synthesizing psilocybin have limitations, including a low yield from extraction and challenges in chemical synthesis. However, this research project offers a potential solution – psilocin-ester prodrugs. By bypassing the challenging phosphorylation step in psilocybin synthesis, these prodrugs have the potential to provide a more accessible and scalable alternative to traditional methods of producing psilocybin. The goal of this research project is to identify psilocin-ester prodrugs that are easy to synthesize, chemically stable, and have similar metabolic stability to psilocybin, with the aim of finding a suitable substitute for psilocybin in the treatment of various mental health disorders. The experimental approach involves the synthesis of a number of psilocin esters, which will then be analyzed for solubility, chemical stability, and metabolic stability. By developing these prodrugs, this research project aims to overcome the limitations of current methods of psilocybin synthesis and increase access to this promising therapy for those in need.

Bio: I am currently pursuing my Master’s degree in neurochemistry at Uppsala University, Sweden, after completing a Bachelor’s degree in chemistry. My passion for psychedelics started when I was offered to try them a couple of years ago. I realized that these magical compounds helped me cope with my autism, opening up a new world for me. This pivotal moment ignited a desire to understand the potential of these substances, leading me to pursue advanced studies in the field. With a fondness for thinking outside the box, I enjoy spending my spare time teaching my pony to perform unique tricks, including painting with a brush held in its mouth. This creative approach to life and learning is just one example of the distinctive perspective I bring to the study of psychedelics and neurochemistry. Driven by curiosity and determination, my ultimate goal is to continue exploring the potential of psychedelics through a PhD program and make a meaningful impact in the field of mental health care by pushing the boundaries of knowledge. I am thrilled to embark on this journey towards revolutionizing our approach to mental health treatments.

Description: The Transcendent or “mystical-type” experience is the key to the maximization of healing. Aside from it being subjectively rated as one of the five most important experiences of a person’s life, it may also be of note that only the most profound healing occurs after a patient undergoes one of these impossible-to-describe experiences. That actually the level of entropy the brain gets into is directly correlated with the amount of “openness” and changes in personality one has.1 Whether it’s for treating addictions, anxiety, or overcoming depression, the literature is quite suggestive that the transcendent or “mystical-type” experience is the key component to the maximization of healing.2-7 But why? And what exactly is it about this experience that changes people? In this talk, we expose not only the four rites of passage one must go through inside a transcendent experience, but we also explain the why.  In other words, there’s this grand realization about life one often comes to at the peak of one of these experiences, and we want to explain what that revelation is, and why the transcendent or “mystical-type” experience is fundamental to understanding ‘what’ consciousness is.

Bio: Jay Nelson is an author, researcher, and award-winning screenwriter obsessed with three questions: (i) What is consciousness? (ii) Is there an edge of experience? And (iii) How best to explain ecological awareness? After originally getting his start in acting, Jay soon found a love for psychology and explaining the human mind. But after a near-death-experience realigned all of his perceptions in 2013, he started moonlighting in neuroscience, philosophy, and evolutionary biology. He has been called a philosopher, a shaman, and a man of science. But, by his own description, he’s a “moderately well-read person who wants to test the limits of human perception.” You can find him online at www.jaynelson.com.

Lindy Nelson is a lifelong student of what makes a human a human. She has always believed that we are more alike than we are different, and is forever on the journey towards a better understanding of how to share that knowledge. From managing escape rooms to restaurants, film sets to corporate offices, she is adept at seeing all of the pieces that make up the whole. She leads with patience and the mantra that we should each use what we have to improve where we can.

Abstract: Over the past couple of decades, a renewal of interest in psychedelic research has ensued into what is known as the “Psychedelic Renaissance”. As a result of this renewed interest in
psychedelia, a number of academic research centers and initiatives for psychedelic studies have
been established. However, many of these opportunities are not accessible to undergraduate
students as can be seen through the lack of collegiate-level courses focused on psychedelics. This
becomes problematic because it is through undergraduate exposure that we inspire the next
generation of psychedelic academics and leaders. Furthermore, the omission of undergraduate
exposure limits the progression of psychedelia since it delays advanced study as many students
have to gain foundational knowledge during their graduate studies. In order to benefit from
undergraduate learning, it is also essential to consider a framework for the curricula that is
representative of the interdisciplinarity of psychedelia and prepares students to contribute to the
psychedelic space. Considering that introductory curricula at the undergraduate level is meant for
breadth, it is of vital importance to develop educational methodologies that would provide an
undergraduate holistic approach to psychedelia. In particular, it is essential to include indigenous
perspectives and histories related to psychedelics to prevent compromising these marginalized
communities and to increase the chance of innovative clinical designs. Overall, this project seeks
to unravel the layers of undergraduate psychedelic education and ways in which curricula can be
implemented for marginalized community benefit. The topic of psychedelic education has not
been discussed much in psychedelic circles, but it is vital because it is through these educational
opportunities that we prepare the next generation of psychedelic academics. Furthermore, it is
imperative to establish an educational framework so that we can garner benefit from
psychedelics but ensure that we are not acting in ways that hurt or ignore marginalized
community perspectives.

Bio: I am a current sophomore at Harvard College studying Statistics with an Economics minor and interested in pursuing an MD-PhD after undergrad. I am of Colombian descent, but I was born and raised in Fairview, New Jersey. I am interested in psychedelics because I believe that they can serve as powerful tools for LGBTQIA+ and POC communities in helping address trauma and distress rooted in negative LGBTQIA+/POC-lived experiences. I am also interested in the intersection of immunology and psychedelics as I believe that it is an understudied field that has a lot of potential. Outside of my academic life, I love playing volleyball, tumbling, drawing, and cooking!

Abstract: Psychedelic assisted therapies are becoming of significant interest to treating a range of mental health conditions, and there is growing interest in using music as a key component of this approach. Music has been shown to have a powerful impact on mood, emotional processing, and consciousness, making it an ideal tool for enhancing the therapeutic experience in psychedelic-assisted therapy. However, despite the potential benefits of using music in this context, there is still much that we do not know about how music affects the therapeutic process. This exploratory presentation will investigate, a set of recommendations for using music in psychedelic-assisted therapy based on a review of the existing academic literature. My recommendations is designed to help therapists and researchers within the psychedelic-assisted therapy field to effectively think about the music in their work to enhance the therapeutic experience and promote positive outcomes for participants.

Bio: My name is James Hosobe and I’m from Phoenix, Arizona. I am an M.S student at the University of Wisconsin’s school of Pharmacy investigating psychoactive pharmaceuticals. My educational background is in Zen Buddhism and medicinal chemistry, and I wrote my senior capstone on Japan’s high suicide rates during my senior capstone.
I am drawn to the study of psychedelics due to their profound impact on consciousness and spirituality. The complexities surrounding psychedelics intrigue me and could give clarity into end-of-life care, enabling individuals to cope with terminal illness and gain a deeper understanding of death. Moreover, psychedelics have shown promise in fostering creativity, driving research advancements, and could aid the treatment of substance abuse disorders. The multifaceted nature of psychedelics and how they relate to music fuels my interest in exploring this field.
Currently, I reside in Madison, WI, and in my free time, I enjoy playing No Limit Texas Hold’em Poker, lifting weights, and learning about new psychoactive compounds. During undergrad, I was a cheerleader and played baritone saxophone in the jazz band.

Bio: Meghan DellaCrosse, Psy.D., is a strengths-oriented clinical psychologist specializing in working with people with serious mental illness and applying acceptance- and mindfulness-based interventions. She completed pre-doctoral internship training at the Early Psychosis Intervention Center at the Ohio State University (OSU) Medical Center, and received her doctorate from the Wright Institute in Berkeley, CA. Currently, Dr. DellaCrosse is  a post-doctoral scholar working with Dr. Alan K. Davis at the Center for Psychedelic Drug Research and Education at the OSU College of Social Work (Columbus, OH). She has worked with the TrPR program at UCSF investigating psilocybin’s effect on mental health conditions such as depression, and Parkinson’s disease, as well as bipolar disorder in collaboration with the CREST.BD group at the University of British Columbia. As a psychedelic researcher, Dr. DellaCrosse is interested in understanding the subjective experiences and therapeutic impact of psychedelic drugs in the contexts of understudied conditions and populations, as well as risk and safety issues. As a researcher-clinician, Dr. DellaCrosse is motivated by her interests in trauma-informed and culturally sensitive approaches, as well as her lifetime research goal to advance our understanding of body/mind relationships in mental health care.

She has worked with adults in community mental health, primary care, academic, and VA medical settings. Her interests have been cultivated through provision of evidence-based treatments to underserved patient populations with a wide range of acuity, trauma, substance use, medical conditions, and psychosocial barriers to care, in addition to mental health field work and training in Sri Lanka and India. Dr. DellaCrosse is passionate about interdisciplinary research and appreciates the depth and critical thinking that her previous career in academic art history and qualitative research brings to present endeavors. As the daughter of public-school educators, Dr. DellaCrosse is a lifelong learner, deeply values the mentorship she has received from many mentors, and loves providing it to aspiring researchers and clinicians.

Abstract: This talk will tell a story of dementia progression from the perspective of network neuroscience, speculating on the role psychedelics might play in this story. While diving into network neuroscience, this talk strives to be accessible to an audience new to neuroscience. Dementia refers to cognitive decline that affects life functioning, caused by a variety of brain pathologies, including the plaques and tangles associated with Alzheimer’s. The loss of cognitive functioning associated with dementia has devastating effects on quality of life. Due to a lack of effective treatments, there is a grave need for innovative therapeutics, sparking interest in the use of psychedelics. However, our understanding of the overall effects of psychedelics on cognitive functioning remains limited, and the use of psychedelics for treating and preventing dementia has yet to be formally tested. One arena of study that has been overlooked when unwrapping this complexity is network neuroscience, a discipline that has independently generated insights in research on both psychedelics and dementia. For example, in the study of dementia, there is evidence of a missing link between brain pathology and cognitive decline. Some individuals with similar levels of brain pathology may experience dementia, while others remain cognitively healthy. Recently, functional imaging used in cognitive network neuroscience has become a powerful window into future dementia. A robust (N = 265) longitudinal study found that decreases in brain network segregation are predictive of worsened cognitive decline up to 10 years past the last scan, independent of brain pathology (Chan et al, 2021). On the other hand, psilocybin decreases brain network segregation while tripping (Daws et al., 2022), and how this interacts with aging is unclear and complex. For example, the lasting effects of psychedelics on brain networks beyond one week after dosing remain unclear (McCulloch et al., 2022).This talk will dive into neurobiological network models of aging and psychedelics to unpack the complexity beyond network segregation, ultimately stressing the need for hard data to make conclusions. Finally, this talk will argue that an upcoming John Hopkins clinical trial looking at psilocybin for depression in people with early Alzheimer’s is not equipped to detect possible interactions with cognitive decline. This talk argues for this trial to utilize a more robust cognitive outcome measure that is used in clinical trials on treatments for Alzheimer’s Disease Dementia, and to have a longer follow up to better capture the long-term effects of psilocybin in this population.

Bio: Maya Amélie Seale (she/her) is a white, able-bodied, woman of trans experience and person with complex trauma, social anxiety, and neurodivergence. Maya’s research interests revolve around interaction design, AI, network neuroscience, gender expansive psychometrics, mental health, minority stress, community psychology, and critical neuroscience. Maya is currently a research assistant at the Wig Neuroimaging Lab studying the influence a person’s life & environment has on brain network predictors of cognitive decline. Recently, she began an internship with the SNaP lab, where she explores how various dimensions of the gender expansive mosaic might affect the outcome of MDMA-assisted group therapy for minority stress. Maya is also a peer volunteer with the Fireside Project, providing support during psychedelic experiences. She credits Audre Lorde, Adrienne Marie Brown, and Julia Serano as writers who have had a significant impact on her personal and academic growth. Maya learned to make sense of transphobia by understanding its connections to colonialism and strives to find solidarity with all oppressed peoples to understand and address the root causes.

Abstract: Knowledge surrounding the design and implementation of clinical trials on psilocybin is limited yet it is crucial to improving patient care and clinical outcomes. As such, this research explores the processes, experiences, and perceptions of psilocybin among clinical trial personnel, within the context of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. 29 clinical trial personnel members in six European cities were interviewed and surveyed. This was a cross-sectional mixed-methods study, exploring attitudes, perceptions, and experiences with psilocybin therapy among clinical trial personnel in Europe. An emphasis was placed on understanding barriers and facilitators to psilocybin research, particularly in the context of COVID-19. Findings did not reflect previous research that identified stigma around psychedelics among clinical psychologists, healthcare workers, and clinical social workers. Consistent with prior research, clinical trial personnel expressed safety concerns, as reflected by the high number of trials investigating the safety of psilocybin. Data collected point to ease of recruitment and treatment, but barriers to treatment access, particularly for racial and ethnic minorities. Overall, clinical trial personnel expressed optimism toward patient experiences with psilocybin, however this effect was more pronounced in female personnel. Results provided support for several components of the psychedelic-assisted therapy paradigm, indicating that these should be retained in future treatment models. In contrast to the researchers’ expectations, COVID-19 did not considerably impact trial processes and experiences. Overall, the study catalyzed a more complete picture of psilocybin research and its unique barriers and facilitators. This may help address problematic trends in mental health and optimize the potential of psilocybin as a treatment.

Bio: Jeremy Scott is a Research Assistant at Duke University, working under Dr. Paul Seli in the Mind at Large Lab. He is also a Robertson Scholar. Jeremy is graduating in May 2023 with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Philosophy, Politics, & Economics at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He has also completed a minor in Sociology at Duke University. Jeremy is from Melbourne, Australia but currently resides in Chapel Hill, NC. He is interested in psychedelics because of their illumination of questions about consciousness and the brain-mind continuum, alongside their vast potential to improve wellbeing. Jeremy’s favorite hobbies are backpacking, fishing, and SCUBA diving.

Abstract: Bipolar disorder is a disabling mental illness that affects 4.4% of the United States population (www.nimh.nih.gov). Within this disorder are several subtypes, including bipolar I and bipolar II disorders. Bipolar I includes full manic episodes whereas bipolar II includes hypomanic episodes and major depressive episodes by diagnostic definition. Bipolar II depression is specifically heinous and debilitating, as the majority of a diagnosed bipolar II patient’s time is spent in depression rather than in hypomania. Major depressive episodes significantly decrease social capability, productivity, and overall quality of life. Antidepressant medications, such as SSRIs, run the risk of producing hypomanic symptoms for these patients. Mood stabilizers and antipsychotics can alleviate depressive symptoms, but most of these medications are only researched for bipolar I disorder and not bipolar II specifically. Additionally, unwanted side effects of these medications can decrease quality of life and cause subsequent syndromes, making their usage not ideal. Therefore, a novel treatment for bipolar II disorder is necessary for treating these major depressive episodes in addition to alleviating disability in these patients. Psychedelics, especially psilocybin, have been researched in unipolar depressive disorders with success. However, it is unclear if the same positive effects of psilocybin could translate to alleviation of depressive symptoms in bipolar II patients. More research is needed to determine if treatment with psilocybin could assist with lessening depressive symptoms or possibly stop a major depressive episode after dosing with psilocybin in a controlled clinical environment.

Bio: Hannah Hilgeman is originally from Boise, Idaho, but lives in New Orleans as a MS student in Cell and Molecular Biology at Tulane University. She has lived experience with bipolar II disorder and aims to educate people about lesser known mental health conditions. She became interested in psychedelics after taking a course about psychedelics in her master’s program. Outside of school, Hannah enjoys creative writing, walking on nature trails, and spending time with her dog. She will soon begin working as a clinical research coordinator after graduating with her MS degree in spring 2023.