‘Psychedelics and Brain Imaging’ by Dr Robin Carhart-Harris

Part of the Ecology, Cosmos & Consciousness lecture series

Tuesday, 24th April, 2012

October Gallery, 24 Old Gloucester Street, London, WC1N 3AL

This talk will describe the research Robin has been carrying out over the last few years involving brain imaging and psychedelics. This work has been motivated by Amanda Feilding and the Beckley Foundation and done under the mentorship of Prof. David Nutt and with the support of Imperial College London and the Universities of Bristol and Cardiff. Robin will describe the rationale,results and implications of their imaging work with psilocybin (magic mushrooms), the early results of an ongoing study with MDMA (ecstasy) and the design of a planned study to assess psilocybin as a treatment for depression. The scientific content will be presented in an accessible way with the hope of stimulating an interest into the neurobiology of psychedelics and their potential therapeutic action.

Robin Carhart-Harris completed his PhD in psychopharmacology at the University of Bristol after doing an MA in psychoanalysis at Brunel University, London. In 2009, under the mentorship of Professor David Nutt, Robin moved to Imperial College London to continue his clinical research with the classic psychedelic drug psilocybin (magic mushrooms). Over the last four years, with Amanda Feilding of the Beckley Foundation and David Nutt, they have built up a programme of research with psychedelics that includes brain imaging with psilocybin and MDMA and soon an MRC-sponsored clinical trial to assess the efficacy of psilocybin as a treatment for major depression. Their work with psilocybin is now published in PNAS and the British Journal of Psychiatry with several other relevant papers to follow.

Please RSVP on Facebook (afraid so) so that we can anticipate numbers

https://www.facebook.com/events/169769799811196/

Please pay on the door:

Entry£7 /£5 Concessions, Arrive 6pm for a 6:30pm Start – Wine available