David E. Olson, a professor of chemistry, and biochemistry and molecular medicine at the University of California, Davis, was recently appointed editor-in-chief of ACS Chemical Neuroscience, a transdisciplinary publication of the American Chemical Society that focuses on the use of chemical and molecular tools for understanding the nervous system and identifying new neurotherapeutics.
Program coordinator Sarah Solar is the nexus point for the UC Davis Institute for Psychedelics and Neurotherapeutics. They liaison between campuses, establish connections between faculty affiliates and the institute, track funding, and coordinate and manage communications, among a host of other tasks. Their fingers are on the institute’s pulse, ensuring its operational functionality.
Annaliese Franz and her lab are designing therapeutic molecules of the future. Through organic synthesis and catalysis, the team is building and improving molecules with therapeutic potential. Some current projects include developing a new nanoparticle technology for livestock vaccines and improving treatments for neurodegenerative disorders like epilepsy.
UC Davis researchers have developed a new method that uses light to transform amino acids — the building blocks of proteins — into molecules that are similar in structure to psychedelics and mimic their interaction with the brain.
In a first-of-its-kind study appearing in Nature Communications, an interdisciplinary team from the university’s Institute for Psychedelics and Neurotherapeutics (IPN) dosed mouse mothers with psilocybin and found that the drug amplified anxiety and depressive-like symptoms associated with perinatal mood disorders — mental health conditions that can arise during or after pregnancy.
UC Davis Health Ventures, part of the Innovation and Economic Development Office (IEDO) at the University of California, Davis, today announced the first investment from its Investing in the Future of Medicine (IFM) Fund, backing Delix Therapeutics.
In new research led by the University of California, Davis, researchers found that non-hallucinogenic versions of psychedelic drugs promote neuroplasticity through the same biochemical pathway as psychedelics. However, unlike psychedelics, they don’t activate genes long thought to be key players in that process.
University of California, Davis, researchers have developed a new, neuroplasticity-promoting drug closely related to LSD that harnesses the psychedelic’s therapeutic power with reduced hallucinogenic potential. The research highlights the new drug’s potential as a treatment option for conditions like schizophrenia, where psychedelics are not prescribed for safety reasons.
In a study appearing in Nature Chemistry, researchers at the University of California, Davis Institute for Psychedelics and Neurotherapeutics (IPN) report the successful total synthesis of ibogaine, ibogaine analogues and related compounds from pyridine — a relatively inexpensive and widely available chemical.
Delix Therapeutics recently announced that the first neuroplastogen drug based on UC Davis Institute for Psychedelics and Neurotherapeutics (IPN) research will be tested in patients with major depressive disorder.
