Miss Dasha Anderson

Recent years have seen a surge of interest into the use of psychedelic drugs such as psilocybin (the active agent in 'magic mushrooms') for treating mental health conditions. Several psychedelics have shown promise in clinical trials, with the exciting advantage over convential antidepressants (e.g. SSRIs) of having rapid and sustained effects on psychiatric symptoms after just 1-3 doses. However, given a dearth of research in this area until relatively recently, much remains unknown about how these drugs exert their therapeutic effects. My research aims to elucidate the mechanisms of action of psychedelics at both the neurobiological and behavioural level using a combination of molecular, electrophysiological and behavioural pharmacology.