Psychedelic Brain Science

In this episode, Dr. J is joined by Dr. Leah Salinsky, a postdoctoral researcher at University of Washington. They discuss the role of serotonin in addiction, the importance of drug discrimination models, and the unique interactions between psychedelics and opioids. Leah shares insights from her current research on polysubstance use, some unpublished findings, and the potential of psychedelics to...

In this episode of Psychedelic Brain Science, Dr. J is joined by Victoria Cvitanovic, a lawyer at Rudick Law Group with a focus on psychedelic medicine, cannabis and healthcare. Throughout the episode they discuss the evolving landscape of drug policy with an emphasis on the importance of understanding the consequences of drug laws on individuals and communities. Victoria also shares her own exper...

In this episode, Dr. J is joined by Dimitri Mugianis, who has previously been featured on This American Life, Psychedelics Today and stars in the documentary I’m Dangerous With Love, which chronicles his work and life. Through the podcast, they discuss the darker side of addiction, recovery through the use of Ibogaine and how Dimitri has come full circle to helping create space to meet people wher...

In this episode, Dr. Jaster is joined by Andrew Ferns, a PhD Candidate at University North Texas, to discuss his unique journey from a chef struggling with addiction to clandestine chemist to PhD researching the effects of psychedelics on cognitive decline. Andrew's current research focuses on the role of psychedelics in aging and cognitive decline, exploring innovative methods to study these...

This episode, Dr. Jaster is joined by Samantha Bumgardaner, MS, who is currently studying substance use disorders and psychedelics for her PhD at Saint Louis University. Her work employs mixed-method approaches to study the influence of state and trait factors on substance use and mental health outcomes in psychedelic therapies. They discuss everything from qualitative vs. quantitative research, t...

This special episode of Psychedelic Brain Science is a collaboration with Psychedelic State(s) of America. Here, Dr. Jaster is joined by Julie Barron of Michigan Psychedelic Society and MI State Rep. Mike McFall to discuss the evolving landscape of psychedelic advocacy in Michigan, recent legislative efforts, and the importance of events like the Entheo Cup. For information about Rep. McFall + leg...

This episode Dr. Jaster is joined by Dr. Jérémie Richard, a psychologist and Assistant Professor at University of Ottawa. At the time of recording, Dr. Richard was a Banting Postdoctoral Researcher in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. This episode discusses a recent publication by Richard and colleagues titled, "Patterns of Int...

In this special episode, Alaina discusses the ongoing fight for the rescheduling of psilocybin with Dr. Sunil Aggarwal and attorney Shane Pennington. They delve into the complexities of the rescheduling process, the legal challenges faced, and the importance of public advocacy in shaping drug policy. The conversation highlights the significance of psilocybin in therapeutic contexts, the right to t...

Dr. Alaina Jaster is joined by Brooke Sanders, MS, a translational neuroscientist focused on understanding epigenetic impacts of synthetic cannabinoids on the human genome. She is also a Content Advisor for Students for Sensible Drug Policy. They discuss a variety of projects Sanders is involved in including: Assessing social aspects of cannabis use in adolescents MS project studying epigenetic ch...

Welcome to the first Causal Friday! These short segments are all about chatting casually with friends, family or strangers and how the most random interests can intersect with science. They will air on a random Friday each month, so you have to subscribe to get the notification! The first guest of this segment is Dr. Jaster's husband and voice of the famous podcast disclaimer, Chris Wood. Here...

Dr. Alaina Jaster is joined by child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr. David Sjöström who is at the University Hospital in Lund, Sweden. He is a current PhD candidate studying adolescent use of psychedelics and perceived effects on wellbeing. They discuss a variety of projects Sjöström is involved in including: Clinical trial exploring the effects of psilocybin in young adults (ages 16–35) with anor...

The final episode of Season 4 of Psychedelic Brain Science discusses a recent preprint that gets at the heart of reproducibility in science. Dr. Jaster is joined by Berkeley PhD candidate Odilia Lu, Stanford researcher and professor Dr. Robert Malenka, and anesthesiologist and Stanford researcher Dr. Boris Heifets, all representing the laboratories involved in the Psychedelic Bay Area Animal Neuro...

In this episode, Dr. Jaster is joined by Kayla Greenstien, a PhD candidate at the University of Sydney researching touch in psychedelic therapy. They'll define different types of touch, theoretical frameworks behind focused bodywork and the ideas surrounding consent to touch in psychedelic therapy. Given the nature of this discussion, there is mention of sexual assault, trauma and abuse so ple...

In this special episode of Psychedelic Brain Science , Dr. Alaina Jaster is joined by Dr. Hilary Marusak, host of BrainSTEM and Principle Investigator in the THINK lab at Wayne State University. They are also joined by Dr. Christine Rabinak, a world-leading PTSD researcher, who brings a unique perspective on the impact of recent federal funding cuts—not just on scientific innovation, but also on p...

On this weeks ISRP Speaker Spotlight Alaina is joined by psychologist and co-founder of the Open Psychedelic Evaluation Nexus (OPEN), Dr. Jason Luoma. They discuss evaluation of psychedelic assisted therapy in the real world following legalization in Portland, Oregon. Register for ISRP at https://www. ISRPsych.org to catch Dr. Luoma's presentation March 7 at 4:15 PM EDT / 1:15 PM PDT. For more abo...

This weeks ISRP Speaker Spotlight is Alejo Acuña, a PhD student in Biology at the Neuroplasticity Unit of the Laboratorio de Neurociencias, University of the Republic, Uruguay. Alejo's project focuses on atypical psychedelic, Ibogaine, and how it can enhance ocular dominance plasticity in the mouse visual cortex, as part of a broader effort to understand its potential role in promoting brain p...

This episode is the first of three in our special ISRP Speaker Spotlight series. We've decided to showcase some amazing scientists that will be presenting at the virtual International Society for Psychedelic Research Conference March 7! It's not too late to register at: https://www.isrpsych.org/conferences Our first feature is Kate Lawson, a PhD student at UC Irvine studying the persistent...

In this episode, Alaina discusses the evolving language about some of our favorite substances and how we got to the term psychedelic. In the first segment, she highlights some historical names for psychedelic substances in western medicine. In the second segment, she is joined by Stanford anesthesiologist and psychedelic researcher Dr. Boris Heifets to discuss how the scientific field classifies c...

This special episode includes presentations from a recent workshop, where Dr. Alaina Jaster, Dr. Neşe Devenot of Johns Hopkins and Dr. Gill Bedi of University of Melbourne presented their expertise and perspectives on how the psychedelic research field can move forward from the recent FDA rejection of MDMA-AT. Dr. Jaster's presentation sets the tone by going over recent events, followed by how res...

Alaina is joined by physician, author, activist and educator Dr. Peter Grinspoon to discuss the use of psychedelics and cannabis in recovery, the stigma associated with drug use and the idea of "california sober." Have questions or want to read his book? Check out Dr. Grinspoon's website https://www.petergrinspoon.com/

This episode is the last of the Psychedelic Circuits mini-series! Today, Alaina gives a brief overview on circuits involved in stress responses. Then Dr. Devin Effinger deep dives into his work with the amygdala, paraventricular nucleus and how these regions send signals to relay important information about threat, stress and more. This circuit goes beyond just anxiety disorders and can also be im...

Welcome to a super extra special episode of Psychedelic Brain Science! Dr. Jaster has finally settled back into real life after spending a week at DEA HQ fighting with Students for Sensible Drug Policy and many other scientists to keep DOI and DOC legal. She's joined today by psychedelic journalist Jack Gorsline, who was embedded with the team. They go through each day and give highlights and take...

This episode is the second installment of the mini-series focused on brain circuits outside of the typical frontal cortex conversation. Today, we hear from Alaina on the basics of pain and touch perception, as well as how our nerves send information to our brains. Alaina is then joined by Dr. Raul Ramos of UC Berkeley, an expert on studying sensory modalities who is now focusing their work on phen...

This episode is the first of three in a mini-series focused on brain circuits outside of the typical conversations. Today, we hear from Alaina on the basics of how neurons talk to each other and a refresher on serotonin signaling. Alaina is then joined by special guest Tanner Anderson, a PhD candidate at University of Kentucky and soon to be postdoc at Yale. Tanner will discuss his recently publis...

Welcome to season 4. In this two part episode, Alaina talks about the ongoing petition against the DEA's proposed rule to schedule DOI and DOC. In the first half of this episode, Alaina is joined by Elijah Z. Ullman, of the SSDP Science Policy Committee. They discuss the background and specific reasons why DOI and DOC should not be scheduled. In the second half of the podcast, Alaina is joined by...