Our science team at the University of Zurich from the domains of medicine, pharmacology, neuroscience and psychology is working towards innovative evidence-based and paradigm-changing treatment approaches for mental health.
As an alternative to widely used symptom- and substitution-oriented treatments in psychiatry, we develop novel process-oriented paradigms that are less focused on specific symptoms and their substitution by means of psychotropic drugs, but rather aim at directly resolving underlying maladaptive processes.
Our iterative research and development program is based on clinical evidence that psychedelic compounds in supportive settings facilitate transformative experiences that are followed by rapid and sustainable decreases in anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress and addictive behaviors.
While ketamine and psilocybin have been researched extensively in the past decades, the indigenous plant medicine ayahuasca currently stimulates a tremendous public and scientific interest due to its antidepressant, anxiolytic and anti-addictive properties.
We study the biomechanisms and efficacy of standardized ayahuasca compounds for stress-related mood disorders. Using state-of-the-art multimodal neuroimaging and biomarkers, we investigate how pharmacological modulation of cerebral circuits predict behavioral change, adaptive neuroplasticity, and psychotherapeutic treatment outcomes.
Methodologically, we develop novel approaches to brain imaging such as topological data analysis and graph theory to get insight into the overall spatiotemporal organization of brain dynamics following transformative treatment interventions.
For clinical trials with ayahuasca, we develop a specifically tailored process-based treatment manual to investigate the temporal dynamics of changeable transdiagnostic processes using ecological momentary assessment (EMA) technologies.
This manual will allow the comparative empirical assessment of the potential of psychedelic compounds to specifically enhance the therapeutic efficacy of psychotherapeutic interventions in different patient populations.
In collaboration with Reconnect Labs we are currently developing treatment guidelines and psychotherapeutic frameworks to improve the safety and tolerability of ayahuasca-assisted therapy.
Through their profound modulatory effects on neurobiological and psychological processes, both psychedelics and meditation have become indispensable research tools for the study of altered states of consciousness.
The present project applies an innovative triple-fold approach to obtaining highly precise first-person accounts of DMT-enhanced-mindfulness in experienced meditators and assessing their impact on reorganization of brain activity and connectivity with multimodal EEG/fMRI recordings before and after a group meditation retreat.
We explore the experiential diversity of psychedelic states using neurophenomenological approaches with a particular focus on transformative experiences.
In collaboration with the Global Ayahuasca Project we aim to deepen our understanding of traditional psychedelic therapy approaches in a naturalistic setting. With the help from a large epidemiological dataset, we aim to optimize contextual factors of psychotropic drug effects.
The investigation of subjective experiences and it’s interplay with a variety of setting variables can provide insights into the causal network of factors contributing to the uniqueness of each psychedelic experience. This enables drawing inferences on outcomes including individual relationships and mental health in everyday life.
In-kind and financial support of different research programmes
UZH Bioentrepreneur
(Forschungskredit UZH, 2019 – 2020)
Partner for pharmaceutical technology development
Iterative R&D program for personalized, transdiagnostic and process-oriented psychotherapy
Psychedelic medicines and their role in shifting the paradigm from pharmacological subisitution towards transformation-based psychiatry
2020 • M. Scheidegger
Conciousness-expanding substances as a novel experimental treatment approach
2018 • M. Scheidegger
Investigation of Psychedelics and Entactogens
Positive psychology in the investigation of psychedelics and entactogens: A critical review
2018 • H. Jungaberle, S. Thal, A. Zeuch, A. Rougemont-Bücking, M. von Heyden, H. Aicher and M. Scheidegger
Mood-Enhancing Effects of Psychedelic Use
Transformative experience and social connectedness mediate the mood-enhancing effects of psychedelics use in naturalistic settings
2020 • M. Forstmann, D. A. Yudkin, A. M. B. Prosser, S. M. Heller and M. J. Crockett
Ayahuasca: Pharmacology, neuroscience and therapeutical potential
2016 • E. Domínguez-Clavé, J. Soler, M. Elices, J. C. Pascual, E. Álvarez, M. de la Fuente Revenga, P. Friedlander, A. Feilding and J. Riba
Human Pharmacology of Ayahuasca
Human Pharmacology of ayahuasca: Subjective and cardiovascular effects, monoamine metabolite excretion and pharmacokinetics
2003 • J. Riba, M. Valle, G. Urbano, M. Yritia, A. Morte and M. J. Barbanoj
The Therapeutic Potentials of Ayahuasca
The therapeutic potentials of ayahuasca: Possible effects against various diseases of civilization
2016 • E. Frecska, P. Bokor and M. Winkelman
N, N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), an endougenous hallucinogen: Past, present and future research to determine its role and function
2018 • S. A. Barker
Ayahuasca, Psychedelic Studies and Health Sciences
Ayahuasca, psychedelic studies and health sciences: The politics of knowledge and inquiry into an amazonian plant brew
2014 • K. W. Tupper and B. C. Labate
Limitations of Antidepressants
Considering the methodological limitations in the evidence base of antidepressants for depression: a reanalysis of a network meta-analysis
2019 • K. Munkholm, A. S. Paludan-Müller and K. Boesen
Rapid Antidepressant Effects of Ayahuasca
Rapid antidepressant effects of the psychedelic ayahuasca in treatment-resistant depression: a randomized placebo-controlled trial
2019 • F. Palhano-Fontes, D. Barreto, H. Onias, K. C. Andrade, M. M. Novaes, J. A. Pessoa, S. A. Mota-Rolim, F. L. Osório, R. Sanches, R. G. Dos Santos, L. F. Tófoli, G. de Oliveira Silveira, M. Yonamine, J. Riba, F. R. Santos, A. A. Silva-Junior, J. C. Alchieri, N. L. Galvão-Coelho, B. Lobão-Soares, J. E. C. Hallak, E. Arcoverde, J. P. Maia-de-Oliveira and D. B. Araújo
Antidepressive and Anxiolytic Effects of Ayahuasca
Antidepressive and anxiolytic effects of ayahuasca: a systematic literature review of animal and human studies
2016 • R. G. Dos Santos, F. L. Osório, J. A. Crippa and J. E. C. Hallak
Efficacy, Tolerability and Safety of Serotonergic Psychedelics
Efficacy, tolerability and safety of serotonergic psychedelics for the management of mood, anxiety and substance-use disorders: a systematic review of systematic reviews
2018 • R. G. Dos Santos, J. C. Bouso, M. Á. Alcázar-Córcoles and J. E. C. Hallak
The Neurobiology of Psychedelic Drugs
The neurobiology of psychedelic drugs: implications for the treatment of mood disorders
2010 • F. X. Vollenweider and M. Kometer
Functional connectivity between prefrontal cortex and subgenual cingulate predicts antidepressant effects of ketamine
2019 • M. Gärtner, S. Aust, M. Bajbouj, Y. Fan, K. Wingenfeld, C. Otte, I. Heuser-Collier, H. Böker, J. Hättenschwiler, E. Seifritz, S. Grimm and M. Scheidegger
Amygdalo-Hippocampal Reactivity
Ketamine reduces amygdalo-hippocampal reactivity to emotional stimulation
2016 • M. Scheidegger, A. Henning, M. Walter, M. Lehmann, R. Kraehenmann, H. Boeker, E. Seifritz and S. Grimm
Psilocybin-induced decrease in amygdala reactivity correlates with enhanced positive mood in healthy volunteers
2015 • R. Kraehenmann, K. H. Preller, M. Scheidegger, T. Pokorny, O. G. Bosch, E. Seifritz and F. X. Vollenweider
Resting State Functional Network Connectivity
Ketamine decreases resting state functional network connectivity in healthy subjects: implications for antidepressant drug action
2012 • M. Scheidegger, M. Walter, M. Lehmann, C. Metzger, S. Grimm, H. Boeker, P. Boesiger, A. Henning and E. Seifritz
Activity and Connectivity of the Default Mode Network
The psychedelic state induced by ayahuasca modulates the activity and connectivity of the default mode network
2015 • F. Palhano-Fontes, K. C. Andrade, L. F. Tofoli, A. C. Santos, J. A. Crippa, J. E. Hallak, S. Ribeiro and D. B. de Araujo
Serotonergic hallucinogen-induced visual perceptual alterations
2018 • M. Kometer and F. X. Vollenweider
REBUS (Relaxed Believes Under Psychedelics) and the Anarchic Brain
REBUS and the anarchic brain: toward a unified model of the brain action of psychedelics
2019 • R. L. Carhart-Harris and K. J. Friston
Dynamical Organization of the Brain Using Topological Data Analysis
Towards a new approach to reveal dynamical organization of the brain using topological data analysis
2018 • M. Saggar, O. Sporns, J. Gonzalez-Castillo, P. A. Bandettini, G. Carlsson, G. Glover and A. L. Reiss
Comparative Phenomenology and Neurobiology of Meditative and Psychedelic States of Consciousness
Comparative phenomenology and neurobiology of meditative and psychedelic states of consciousness: implications for psychedelic-assisted therapy
2020 • M. Scheidegger
Classic Hallucinogens and Mystical Experiences
Classic hallucinogens and mystical experiences: phenomenology and neural correlates
2018 • F. S. Barrett and R. R. Griffiths
Acute and Sustained Response to Psychedelic Psilocybin
Characterization and prediction of acute and sustained response to psychedelic psilocybin in a mindfulness group retreat
2019 • L. Smigielski, M. Kometer, M. Scheidegger, R. Krähenmann, T. Huber and F. X. Vollenweider
Modulation of Self-Consciousness and Brain Default Mode Network
Psilocybin-assisted mindulness training modulates self-consciousness and brain default mode network connectivity with lasting effects
2019 • L. Smigielski, M. Scheidegger, M. Kometer and F. X. Vollenweider
Psilocybin-Induced Spiritial Experiences and Insightfulness
Psilocybin-induced spiritual experiences and insightfulness are associated with synchronization of neuronal oscillations
2015 • M. Kometer, T. Pokorny, E. Seifritz and F. X. Vollenweider
Acute Intake of Ayahuasca Increases Mindfulness-Related Capacities
Exploring the therapeutical potential of ayahuasca: acute intake increases mindfulness-related capacities
2016 • J. Soler, M. Elices, A. Franquesa, S. Barker, P. Friedlander, A. Feilding, J. C. Pascual and J. Riba
Studying the Experience of Meditation
Studying the experience of meditation through micro-phenomenology
2019 • C. Petitmengin, M. van Beek, M. Bitbol, J. M. Nissou and A. Roepstorff
Restructuring consciousness – the psychedelic state in light of integrated information theory
2015 • A. R. Gallimore
Neural Dynamics and Consciousness
Radical embodiment: neural dynamics and consciousness
2001 • E. Thompson and F. J. Varela
Microcognitive science: bridging experiential and neuronal microdynamics
2013 • C. Petitmengin and J. P. Lachaux
Minimal phenomenal experience: meditation, tonic alertness and the phenomenology of “pure” consciousness
2020 • T. Metzinger
Nondual Awareness and Minimal Phenomenal Experience
Nondual awareness and minimal phenomenal experience
2020 • Z. Josipovic and V. Miskovic
Psychedelics, Meditation and Self-Consciousness
Psychedelics, meditation and self-consciousness
2018 • R. Millière, R. L. Carhart-Harris, L. Roseman, F. M. Trautwein and A. Berkovich-Ohana
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Neurophenomenology
The hitchhiker’s guide to neurophenomenology – the case of studying self bounderies with meditators
2020 • A. Berkovich-Ohana, Y. Dor-Ziderman, F. M. Trautwein, Y. Schweitzer, O. Nave, S. Fulder and Y. Ataria
A Methodological Remedy to the Hard Problem
Neurophenomenology: a methodological remedy to the hard problem
1996 • F. J. Varela