Psilocybin Research Institutions: A Comprehensive Directory

Detailed profiles of the major academic centres, non-profit organisations, and pharmaceutical companies driving psilocybin science — including how to participate in ongoing clinical trials.

The past two decades have witnessed a remarkable renaissance in psychedelic science. After a decades-long moratorium following the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, a small group of researchers — many working against considerable institutional resistance — began rebuilding a rigorous, IRB-approved evidence base for psilocybin. Today, more than 60 active registered trials appear on ClinicalTrials.gov for psilocybin alone, spread across institutions on five continents.

This page provides the most detailed publicly available directory of psilocybin research institutions, covering their history, funding, key personnel, landmark publications, active trials as of mid-2026, and practical guidance for people wishing to participate. Information is compiled from published literature, institution websites, ClinicalTrials.gov, and regulatory filings. This is an educational resource; nothing here constitutes medical advice.

Major US Research Centres

Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research

Full official name: Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Location: Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Founded: The formal Center was established in September 2019, though psilocybin research at Johns Hopkins began around the year 2000 when Roland Griffiths began his pioneering human studies. The 2019 launch was supported by an initial $17 million in philanthropic donations and represented the first dedicated psychedelic research centre at a major US medical institution.

Current leadership: Matthew Johnson, Ph.D., serves as the Susan Hill Ward Professor in Psychedelics and Consciousness and assumed the role of director following the death of Roland Griffiths in October 2023. Johnson specialises in the intersection of behavioural pharmacology and addiction, and has led the centre's smoking-cessation programme since its inception.

Funding sources: The centre is funded exclusively through private philanthropy and has no pharmaceutical company backing, a deliberate choice to preserve research independence. Major donors include Tim Ferriss ($17 million at launch), the Steven and Alexandra Cohen Foundation, David Bronner (CEO of Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps), Blake Mycoskie (founder of TOMS footwear), and Craig Nerenberg. The centre has also received grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for specific trials.

Key Researchers

  • Roland Griffiths, Ph.D. (1946–2023): Founder of the psychedelic programme at Hopkins. One of the most cited psychopharmacologists in the world. His landmark 2006 paper in Psychopharmacology re-opened the modern era of psilocybin research. He was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2023 and died in October of that year after publishing a final paper on his own experience with psilocybin during terminal illness.
  • Matthew Johnson, Ph.D.: Current director. Led the smoking cessation studies (2014, 2017), one of the highest quit-rates ever recorded for any smoking intervention.
  • Albert Garcia-Romeu, Ph.D.: Leads research into psilocybin for substance use disorders, including opioid use disorder. Has published extensively on the relationship between mystical experiences and therapeutic outcomes.
  • Mary Cosimano, M.S.W.: Lead session guide and therapist, present in sessions for over two decades. Her work on the therapeutic relationship within psilocybin sessions is foundational to the Hopkins model.

Research Focus Areas

The centre investigates psilocybin's potential across a wide range of conditions: major depressive disorder (MDD), treatment-resistant depression, nicotine use disorder, opioid use disorder, cocaine use disorder, alcohol use disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, Alzheimer's disease-related depression, and existential distress in patients with cancer or life-threatening illness. The centre also maintains a basic science track examining psilocybin's effects on brain function, personality, and spirituality in healthy volunteers.

Landmark Publications

  • Griffiths, R.R. et al. (2006). Psilocybin can occasion mystical-type experiences having substantial and sustained personal meaning and spiritual significance. Psychopharmacology, 187(3), 268–283. — The study that restarted the modern era; 67% of volunteers rated the experience among the top five most meaningful of their lives.
  • Griffiths, R.R. et al. (2008). Mystical-type experiences occasioned by psilocybin mediate the attribution of personal meaning and spiritual significance 14 months later. Journal of Psychopharmacology.
  • Griffiths, R.R. et al. (2011). Psilocybin occasioned mystical-type experiences: Immediate and persisting dose-related effects in meditators. Psychopharmacology.
  • Johnson, M.W. et al. (2014). Pilot study of the 5-HT2AR agonist psilocybin in the treatment of tobacco addiction. Journal of Psychopharmacology — 80% abstinence at 6 months, unprecedented for any smoking cessation intervention.
  • Griffiths, R.R. et al. (2016). Psilocybin produces substantial and sustained decreases in depression and anxiety in patients with life-threatening cancer. Journal of Psychopharmacology.
  • Johnson, M.W. et al. (2017). Long-term follow-up of psilocybin-facilitated smoking cessation. American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse.
  • Davis, A.K. et al. (2020). Effects of psilocybin-assisted therapy on major depressive disorder. JAMA Psychiatry — 71% response rate, 54% remission rate.

Active Trials (2025–2026)

  • Psilocybin for Alzheimer's disease-related depression (Phase 2, in collaboration with neurologists)
  • Psilocybin for cocaine use disorder (Phase 2)
  • Psilocybin for major depressive disorder — long-term follow-up cohort
  • Exploration of 5-MeO-DMT (toad venom compound) for depression and wellbeing
  • Psilocybin for opioid use disorder — expansion study led by Garcia-Romeu

How to Participate

Visit volunteer.hopkinsmedicine.org and search for "psilocybin." You can also browse specific trials at ClinicalTrials.gov (search "Johns Hopkins psilocybin"). Typical eligibility criteria: age 21–75, no personal or first-degree family history of psychotic disorders, no current severe cardiovascular disease, willingness to discontinue SSRIs or SNRIs for a washout period (usually 2–6 weeks before dosing sessions), and no prior psilocybin use within a specified window. Screening involves detailed psychiatric interviews, medical history review, and sometimes ECG. Participants are compensated for time.

Website: hopkinspsychedelic.org

Notable: Hopkins was the first US academic centre dedicated exclusively to psychedelic research. Its training programmes have helped seed new psychedelic research programmes at dozens of institutions worldwide. Roland Griffiths himself participated in psilocybin sessions during his terminal cancer diagnosis and published his reflections — an act of remarkable intellectual integrity that drew widespread attention in 2023.

Imperial College London Centre for Psychedelic Research

Full official name: Centre for Psychedelic Research, Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London

Location: London, United Kingdom

Founded: The Centre was formally established in April 2019, building on research that began around 2012 when Robin Carhart-Harris joined David Nutt's neuropsychopharmacology group. It is the first psychedelic research centre in Europe at a major research-intensive university.

Current leadership: Professor David Nutt, Edmund J. Safra Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology, serves as director. Nutt was previously sacked as chair of the UK's Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs in 2009 after publicly stating that alcohol and tobacco are more harmful than many illicit drugs — a controversy that ironically elevated his public profile and reinforced his commitment to evidence-based drug policy. Robin Carhart-Harris, who co-led the centre from its inception, moved to UCSF in 2021.

Key Researchers

  • David Nutt, D.M., F.R.C.Psych.: Director. Internationally recognised for drug harm ranking research and psychedelic neuropharmacology.
  • Robin Carhart-Harris, Ph.D. (now UCSF): Co-founder of the Centre. Developed the REBUS (Relaxed Beliefs Under Psychedelics) model and led the landmark fMRI and TRD studies from Imperial.
  • Mendel Kaelen, Ph.D.: Conducted seminal research on how music affects psilocybin session outcomes, showing that music accounts for a substantial proportion of therapeutic variance.
  • Sam Turton, Ph.D.: Leads psychotherapy protocol development and the integration of psychological support models.
  • Chris Timmermann, Ph.D.: Leads the Centre's DMT research programme, including the landmark extended DMT infusion studies that mimic near-death experiences.

Funding

Funding comes from multiple sources: the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) has provided grants for the treatment-resistant depression work; Imperial College's own Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF); collaboration with the Beckley Foundation (Amanda Feilding provided early support for the Carhart-Harris fMRI work); private donors; and philanthropic grants from organisations including the Alexander Technique charitable trust.

Research Focus Areas

The Centre is primarily a neuroscience-led research group, distinguished by its use of neuroimaging (fMRI, MEG, EEG) to map how psilocybin alters brain connectivity. Key themes: default mode network (DMN) disruption as a mechanism of action; psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression (TRD); the neuroscience of consciousness; DMT and near-death experiences; acoustic environments during psychedelic therapy; and machine-learning approaches to predict treatment response from neuroimaging biomarkers.

Landmark Publications

  • Carhart-Harris, R.L. et al. (2012). Neural correlates of the psychedelic state as determined by fMRI studies with psilocybin. PNAS — The first fMRI study of a human under psilocybin, demonstrating decreased activity in the default mode network.
  • Carhart-Harris, R.L. et al. (2016). Psilocybin with psychological support for treatment-resistant depression: An open-label feasibility study. Lancet Psychiatry — All 12 patients showed reduced depression scores; 5 were in full remission at 3 months.
  • Carhart-Harris, R. et al. (2018). Psilocybin with psychological support for treatment-resistant depression: six-month follow-up. Psychopharmacology.
  • Carhart-Harris, R. et al. (2021). Trial of psilocybin versus escitalopram for depression. New England Journal of Medicine — Psilocybin was non-inferior to the SSRI escitalopram on the primary endpoint and superior on several secondary wellbeing measures.
  • Timmermann, C. et al. (2023). DMT extended infusion studies: phenomenological and neuroimaging characterisation of NDE-like states.

Active Trials (2025–2026)

  • Psilocybin for eating disorders (anorexia nervosa) — collaboration with UCSF and King's College London
  • Continuation and follow-up cohorts of treatment-resistant depression research
  • Extended DMT infusion — Phase 1 pharmacology and phenomenology
  • Neuroimaging biomarkers for psychedelic treatment response

How to Participate

Visit imperial.ac.uk/psychedelic-research-centre where a participant registration page allows you to express interest in current and future studies. Eligible participants are typically UK residents aged 18–65, with specific inclusion/exclusion criteria varying by trial. The TRD studies require a confirmed diagnosis of treatment-resistant depression, while healthy volunteer studies accept participants without psychiatric diagnoses.

Website: imperial.ac.uk/psychedelic-research-centre

NYU Langone Center for Psychedelic Medicine

Full official name: NYU Langone Center for Psychedelic Medicine, NYU Langone Health / NYU Grossman School of Medicine

Location: New York City, New York, USA

Founded: Formalised as the Center for Psychedelic Medicine in approximately 2021, though psilocybin clinical research at NYU began around 2010 under Stephen Ross, making it one of the two original US academic centres for modern psilocybin clinical research (alongside Hopkins).

Leadership: Michael Bogenschutz, M.D., serves as director. Stephen Ross, M.D., Associate Professor of Psychiatry, is a founding researcher and Associate Director. Bhanu Tewari, M.D., and Maryse Zehrung contribute to protocol development and clinical research coordination.

Funding

NYU Langone Health provides institutional support; the Centre also receives NIH grants, particularly for the alcohol use disorder trials, as well as private philanthropic donations. The alcohol use disorder RCT (JAMA Psychiatry 2022) was supported in part by the Heffter Research Institute.

Research Focus Areas

NYU's distinctive strength is in alcohol use disorder (AUD), cancer-related psychological distress, and existential anxiety. The Centre has a particular emphasis on rigorous randomised controlled trial design and has pioneered the use of active placebos (niacin at high dose) in psilocybin research to improve blinding. Current expansion areas include opioid use disorder and major depressive disorder.

Landmark Publications

  • Ross, S. et al. (2016). Rapid and sustained symptom reduction following psilocybin treatment for anxiety and depression in patients with life-threatening cancer. Journal of Psychopharmacology — Immediate and sustained reduction in anxiety and depression in cancer patients; effects maintained at 6.5-month follow-up.
  • Bogenschutz, M.P. et al. (2015). Psilocybin-assisted treatment for alcohol dependence: A proof-of-concept study. Journal of Psychopharmacology — Pilot study showing dramatic reductions in drinking days.
  • Bogenschutz, M.P. et al. (2022). Percentage of heavy drinking days following psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy vs placebo in the treatment of adult patients with alcohol use disorder. JAMA Psychiatry — The landmark n=93 RCT: 83% reduction in heavy drinking days in the psilocybin group vs 51% in placebo at 32 weeks. The first large-scale RCT for psilocybin in AUD.

Active Trials (2025–2026)

  • Psilocybin for opioid use disorder — Phase 2 trial
  • Psilocybin for major depressive disorder — continuation and follow-up
  • Mechanistic substudies exploring mediators and moderators of psilocybin response

How to Participate

Visit nyulangone.org/research and search "psychedelic," or browse ClinicalTrials.gov for NYU Langone psychedelic studies. The alcohol use disorder studies require a confirmed AUD diagnosis; participants must be willing to reduce or stop drinking.

Website: nyulangone.org/locations/center-for-psychedelic-medicine

Notable: NYU completed the first large-scale RCT (n=93) for psilocybin in alcohol use disorder, published in JAMA Psychiatry in 2022 — a methodological landmark for the field because it included an active placebo control and met the pre-specified primary endpoint with statistical significance.

Non-Profit Organisations and Industry

MAPS — Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies

Full official name: Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS); MAPS Public Benefit Corporation (MAPS PBC) is its for-profit subsidiary responsible for drug development

Location: San Jose, California, USA (with global offices and a European office in the Netherlands)

Founded: 1986 by Rick Doblin, Ph.D., who has led the organisation continuously since its inception — a tenure of nearly four decades devoted to a single mission.

Type: Non-profit 501(c)(3) research and educational organisation with a for-profit PBC subsidiary for clinical development activities.

Key Figures

  • Rick Doblin, Ph.D.: Founder and executive director. Harvard-trained, with a dissertation on the regulation of the medical use of psychedelics and marijuana. Has devoted his career to obtaining FDA approval for MDMA-assisted therapy.
  • Amy Emerson: CEO of MAPS Public Benefit Corporation, overseeing the clinical development pipeline.

Funding

MAPS is funded by donations from tens of thousands of individual donors, foundation grants, and — for Phase 3 activities — investor capital channelled through MAPS PBC. MAPS does not accept pharmaceutical company investment in a way that compromises the organisation's non-commercial mission.

Primary Focus: MDMA-Assisted Therapy for PTSD

MAPS' primary scientific and regulatory project has been MDMA-assisted therapy (MDMA-AT) for post-traumatic stress disorder. The Phase 3 MAPP1 trial (Mitchell et al., 2021, Nature Medicine, n=90) found that 67% of participants who received MDMA-AT no longer met PTSD criteria at study endpoint, compared to 32% in the placebo arm. The MAPP2 replication trial reported similar results. MAPS submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) to the FDA in 2024. An FDA advisory committee meeting in June 2024 raised concerns about functional unblinding and trial design — the FDA ultimately issued a Complete Response Letter requesting additional data, meaning full approval remains pending as of mid-2026.

MAPS and Psilocybin

MAPS does not currently sponsor psilocybin clinical trials. The IND for psilocybin in MDD is held by Usona Institute, and COMPASS Pathways holds an IND for treatment-resistant depression. MAPS' contribution to psilocybin science is primarily educational, policy-oriented, and regulatory-pathway expertise. MAPS' annual Psychedelic Science conference (held in Denver in 2023 with over 12,000 attendees) is the largest psychedelic research gathering in the world and features extensive psilocybin research presentations.

Zendo Project

MAPS operates the Zendo Project, a harm reduction programme that provides psychological support to individuals experiencing difficult psychedelic experiences at festivals and public events. Zendo volunteers are trained in psychedelic crisis support — a model that influences clinical approaches to challenging experiences in formal trials.

Website: maps.org

Usona Institute

Full official name: Usona Institute, Inc.

Location: Madison, Wisconsin, USA

Founded: 2014

Type: Non-profit, 501(c)(3) medical research organisation. "Usona" means "United States of North America" in Esperanto, and the organisation's name reflects a commitment to access for all Americans, not just those who can afford premium private services.

Mission and Philosophy

Usona's central mission is the development of psilocybin as a medicine available to the general public, with a deliberate non-profit, non-patent approach that contrasts sharply with for-profit pharmaceutical models. The organisation aims for psilocybin to be available as a low-cost generic medicine, not a proprietary product requiring expensive licensing. Usona holds the FDA IND (Investigational New Drug application) for synthetic psilocybin in the treatment of major depressive disorder.

Key Researchers

  • Charles Raison, M.D. (University of Wisconsin-Madison): Principal investigator for the PSIL201 trial. An expert in the intersection of immunology and depression — his group's interest in psilocybin connects to theories about inflammation as a driver of depression.
  • Frederick Barrett, Ph.D. (Johns Hopkins): Collaborating investigator, contributing expertise in psilocybin pharmacology and neuroimaging.

Landmark Study: PSIL201

The PSIL201 Phase 2 study is Usona's pivotal trial. Published in eClinicalMedicine (The Lancet) in 2023, the double-blind, placebo-controlled trial enrolled 104 participants with moderate-to-severe MDD. Participants received a single 25mg dose of synthetic psilocybin or placebo in a supported therapeutic context. The psilocybin group showed statistically and clinically significant reductions in the GRID-HAMD depression scale at the primary endpoint (43-day follow-up), with large effect sizes and rapid onset of benefit. This is the largest placebo-controlled psilocybin MDD trial published to date and forms the foundation for Usona's Phase 3 programme.

Active Trials (2025–2026)

  • Phase 3 trials for major depressive disorder (MDD) — multiple sites across the US
  • Ongoing pharmacokinetic and safety characterisation studies

Key Difference from COMPASS

Both Usona and COMPASS use synthetic psilocybin and have INDs for depressive disorders, but their models diverge fundamentally. Usona is non-profit and does not intend to patent psilocybin therapy; COMPASS is a publicly traded company with commercial goals and has filed patents on aspects of psilocybin administration. If both reach the market, Usona's approach would likely result in a lower-cost, more widely accessible medicine.

Website: usonainstitute.org

COMPASS Pathways

Full official name: COMPASS Pathways plc

Location: London, UK (incorporated in England and Wales; listed on NASDAQ: CMPS)

Founded: 2016 by Ekaterina Malievskaia and George Goldsmith, a couple motivated by their son's treatment-resistant depression and their inability to access psychedelic therapy.

Type: Publicly traded pharmaceutical company (NASDAQ: CMPS). This makes COMPASS unique among psychedelic organisations: it is subject to public market scrutiny, quarterly earnings pressure, and SEC reporting requirements.

Product: COMP360

COMPASS's investigational product is COMP360, a proprietary synthetic form of psilocybin characterised to a specific polymorphic crystalline form (Polymorph A). COMPASS holds patents on this polymorph and on aspects of the delivery system (e.g., the specific formulation of the capsule). This has generated significant controversy in the psychedelic research community, with critics arguing that these patents could restrict access and commercialise a natural compound.

Key Researcher

Guy Goodwin, F.Med.Sci.: Chief Medical Officer. Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry at Oxford University, former president of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology. A highly credentialed regulatory and clinical psychiatry expert who lends scientific credibility to COMPASS's FDA engagement.

Landmark Study: COMP005 (Phase 2b)

The COMP005 trial, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2022 (Goodwin et al., n=233), was the largest randomised psilocybin trial ever conducted at the time of publication. Participants with treatment-resistant depression received a single dose of COMP360 at 1mg, 10mg, or 25mg. The 25mg group showed statistically significant improvement in MADRS (Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale) at the primary endpoint (3 weeks). The 10mg group showed a non-significant trend. The 1mg group (active control) showed minimal response. The trial was notable for the size, rigour, and international multi-site design.

Active Trials (2025–2026)

  • COMP006 Phase 3 trial (TRD): This is the largest psilocybin RCT ever attempted, with a target enrolment exceeding 900 participants across multiple countries. The trial tests COMP360 25mg versus 1mg (active control) in treatment-resistant depression. Results are anticipated in 2026–2027 and could form the basis for an FDA NDA submission.
  • Exploratory trials for PTSD indication

Controversy: Patents

COMPASS has filed patents not only on COMP360's polymorphic form but also on aspects of the therapeutic environment and administration procedures — including the positioning of patients during sessions, the role of therapists, and specific aspects of the support model. Critics, including Tim Ferriss and the Usona Institute, have publicly expressed concern that these patents could be weaponised to restrict other researchers or charge premium prices. COMPASS has stated the patents are defensive and will not be used to block legitimate research.

Website: compasspathways.com

Additional US Research Programmes

University of Wisconsin-Madison — Transdisciplinary Center for Research in Psychoactive Substances (TCRPS)

Full official name: Transdisciplinary Center for Research in Psychoactive Substances, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Location: Madison, Wisconsin, USA

Key researchers: Paul Hutson, Pharm.D., Ph.D. (associate director, expert in clinical pharmacology); Charles Raison, M.D. (psychiatry, depression and immunology); Cody Wenthur, Ph.D. (pharmacology, drug development); James Blumenthal, Ph.D. (psychotherapy integration).

Research Focus Areas

The University of Wisconsin functions as both an academic research hub and a manufacturing and pharmacological characterisation site. Key research areas include psilocybin pharmacokinetics and drug-drug interaction studies (critically important for patients on concomitant medications); psilocybin for alcohol use disorder (a distinct programme from NYU's); psilocybin and the gut-brain axis (exploring how gut microbiome changes may mediate antidepressant effects); and basic behavioural pharmacology of serotonergic compounds.

The UW-Madison connection to Usona Institute is deep: Paul Hutson led the regulatory and manufacturing aspects of the PSIL201 trial, and the university's clinical research infrastructure hosted several trial sites. The UW-Madison programme is distinguished by its explicit focus on access and affordability — a philosophical alignment with Usona's non-patent mission.

Active Trials (2025–2026)

  • Psilocybin for alcohol use disorder — Phase 2 study
  • Pharmacokinetic and drug interaction studies (psilocybin with common antidepressants, anticoagulants)
  • Psilocybin and gut microbiome — exploratory mechanistic study

Website: tcrps.wisc.edu

UC San Diego Center for Psychedelic Research

Full official name: UC San Diego Psychedelic and Health Research Initiative (PHRI), School of Medicine, University of California, San Diego

Location: San Diego (La Jolla), California, USA

Founded: 2023 — one of the newest major psychedelic research programmes in the US, established as regulatory and philanthropic momentum accelerated.

Key researchers: Joel Dimsdale, M.D. (founding advisor, emeritus Professor of Psychiatry); Timothy Furnish, M.D. (pain medicine); various faculty from psychiatry, neuroscience, and addiction medicine.

Research Focus Areas

UCSD brings a distinctive strength in pain medicine and addiction medicine infrastructure. The centre is actively exploring psilocybin for chronic pain (particularly fibromyalgia and complex regional pain syndrome), addiction (alcohol, opioids), depression, and PTSD. A collaboration with VA San Diego for veteran PTSD research leverages UCSD's established relationship with the military veteran population in Southern California — one of the largest in the country.

UCSD's programme benefits from proximity to San Diego's robust biotech and clinical research ecosystem and the university's existing clinical trial infrastructure. The integration of psychedelic research with established pain medicine programmes is particularly novel — chronic pain has been underexplored in the psychedelic literature relative to depression and addiction.

Active Trials (2025–2026)

  • Psilocybin for chronic pain conditions — exploratory Phase 1/2
  • Psilocybin for PTSD in veterans — in collaboration with VA San Diego
  • Psilocybin for alcohol use disorder

Website: health.ucsd.edu

UCSF Neuroscape / Psychedelics Division

Full official name: Translational Psychedelic Research Program, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco (hosted within Neuroscape)

Location: San Francisco, California, USA

Leadership: Robin Carhart-Harris, Ph.D. (Director of Psychedelics Research, joined UCSF in 2021 from Imperial College London). Carhart-Harris is one of the most prolific and influential researchers in the field, having authored over 100 publications on psychedelic neuroscience.

Neuroscape Context

Neuroscape is UCSF's neuroscience and technology centre directed by Adam Gazzaley, M.D., Ph.D. Its primary mission is developing neurotechnology — EEG systems, closed-loop neurofeedback, digital therapeutics — and the integration of psychedelic research within Neuroscape is scientifically significant: it allows Carhart-Harris's group to apply cutting-edge neurotechnology to understanding how psilocybin changes brain dynamics.

Research Focus Areas

The UCSF programme continues the trajectory set at Imperial: psilocybin for major depressive disorder; rigorous neuroimaging characterisation of psychedelic brain states; development of biological biomarkers (brain imaging, blood-based markers) that predict who will respond to psilocybin therapy; and the REBUS (Relaxed Beliefs Under Psychedelics) theoretical framework. Carhart-Harris is also active in anorexia nervosa research, a severely treatment-refractory condition with the highest mortality of any psychiatric diagnosis.

Active Trials (2025–2026)

  • Psilocybin for anorexia nervosa — in collaboration with Imperial College London and King's College London
  • Psilocybin for major depressive disorder — Phase 2 continuation with neuroimaging substudies
  • Biomarker development for psychedelic response prediction — EEG and fMRI-based
  • Theoretical and mechanistic studies of the REBUS model using computational neuroimaging

Website: neuroscape.ucsf.edu

Notable: Carhart-Harris brought the intellectual legacy of Imperial's neuroscience programme — including the default mode network framework, the REBUS model, and the DMT consciousness research — to UCSF, making the San Francisco programme arguably the world's leading centre for psychedelic neuroscience as of 2025–2026.

Foundations and Funding Organisations

Beckley Foundation

Full official name: The Beckley Foundation (charitable trust)

Location: Oxford, United Kingdom (based at Beckley Park, a historic house near Oxford)

Founded: 1998 by Amanda Feilding, Countess of Wemyss and March, a British scientist and policy reformer who has been advocating for evidence-based drug policy since the 1960s.

Type: Charitable trust — one of the longest-running psychedelic research and drug policy organisations in the world.

Research Programme

The Beckley Foundation operates the Beckley/Imperial Research Programme in collaboration with Imperial College London — this partnership, between Amanda Feilding and Robin Carhart-Harris, produced the first modern psilocybin fMRI study (2012, PNAS) and several of the most important papers in psychedelic neuroscience. The Foundation has also supported research on ayahuasca in Brazil (in collaboration with Brazilian institutions), LSD microdosing studies in the Netherlands, and cannabis research.

Policy Work

Beyond science, the Beckley Foundation is a prominent voice in drug policy reform. It has submitted policy papers to the United Nations International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), advocating for rescheduling of psychedelics to enable research. The Foundation organises symposia attended by scientists, policymakers, and international officials. Amanda Feilding's term "harm reduction" has become standard language in global drug policy discussions.

Annual Conference

The Beckley Foundation co-organises or participates in annual Psychedelic Science conferences, which bring together researchers from around the world and have grown from small academic gatherings into major international scientific events (the 2023 Psychedelic Science conference in Denver attracted approximately 12,000 attendees).

Website: beckleyfoundation.org

Heffter Research Institute

Full official name: Heffter Research Institute

Location: Administrative offices in Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA; the institute works entirely through partner universities and does not maintain its own laboratory facilities.

Founded: 1993 by a group of scientists committed to resuming psychedelic research: David Nichols, Ph.D. (Purdue University), Mark Geyer, Ph.D. (UCSD), Charles Grob, M.D. (Harbor-UCLA), and Dennis McKenna, Ph.D. (ethnobotanist and brother of Terence McKenna).

Type: Non-profit 501(c)(3) research funding organisation. Named after Arthur Heffter, the German chemist who identified mescaline as the psychoactive component of peyote in 1897.

Role and Significance

The Heffter Research Institute is often called the "granddaddy" of psychedelic research funding organisations because it provided critical early support for the studies that re-opened the field. Most importantly, Heffter funded significant components of Roland Griffiths' landmark 2006 study at Johns Hopkins — the paper that effectively restarted the entire modern era of psilocybin research. Without Heffter's funding during the years when NIH support was impossible to obtain, the Hopkins programme might not have launched.

Heffter has also funded research at NYU (the alcohol use disorder work), UCLA (Grob's cancer anxiety study), and UCSF. Rather than building its own infrastructure, Heffter functions as a grant-making body that identifies and supports the highest-quality research proposals at established universities — a lean, efficient model that has had disproportionate impact relative to its size.

Notable Funded Research

  • Griffiths et al. (2006) — Johns Hopkins landmark psilocybin study (partial funder)
  • Grob et al. (2011) — Psilocybin for existential anxiety in cancer patients, Harbor-UCLA
  • Bogenschutz et al. (2015, 2022) — NYU alcohol use disorder programme (partial funder)

Website: heffter.org

International Research Institutions

Psilocybin research has expanded significantly beyond the US and UK. Below are brief profiles of the most significant international programmes.

University of Zurich / University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich (Switzerland)

Key researchers: Franz Vollenweider, M.D. (director of the Heffter Research Centre Zurich and one of the world's most senior psychedelic neuroscientists); Katrin Preller, Ph.D. (now also affiliated with Yale; expert in the social and cognitive neuroscience of psilocybin).

The Zurich group has operated continuously since the 1990s — longer than any other institution — and has produced fundamental work on the serotonin 2A receptor as the primary site of psilocybin action, on psilocybin's effects on social cognition and empathy, and on the psychological determinants of psychedelic experience (set and setting). Vollenweider's group was among the first to demonstrate that psilocybin's psychedelic effects can be blocked by 5-HT2A antagonists, providing mechanistic confirmation of the serotonergic hypothesis. The Zurich programme operates within a legal Swiss research framework that has enabled more continuous access to participants than US programmes historically could achieve. Current focus includes social cognition, creativity, mindfulness synergies, and mechanism-of-action neuroimaging.

Website: puk.uzh.ch

Maastricht University (Netherlands)

Key researcher: Kim Kuypers, Ph.D. (Associate Professor of Neuropsychology and Psychopharmacology), together with Jan Ramaekers, Ph.D.

Maastricht University occupies a unique niche in psychedelic research: it is the world's leading centre for rigorous scientific investigation of microdosing. Because the Netherlands permits psilocybin truffles (which contain the same compounds as psilocybin mushrooms and are not explicitly scheduled), Kuypers' group has been able to conduct placebo-controlled crossover studies of microdosing — an experimental design nearly impossible to execute in countries where all psilocybin products are Schedule I. Key findings include evidence that microdoses produce measurable but modest effects on certain cognitive domains (creativity, convergent and divergent thinking) and on mood, though with significant individual variation. The Maastricht group has also contributed to pharmacokinetics — characterising the precise blood concentration curves and elimination half-life of low-dose psilocybin in healthy volunteers. Their work provides the most methodologically rigorous data on microdosing published to date.

Website: maastrichtuniversity.nl

University of Basel (Switzerland)

Key researcher: Felix Hasler, Ph.D. (neuropharmacologist, author of the definitive pharmacology review of psilocybin); also historically affiliated with Matthias Liechti, M.D., Ph.D. (now more focused on LSD pharmacology).

The University of Basel has a historic connection to psychedelic research that goes back to Albert Hofmann — the Swiss chemist who first synthesised LSD in 1938 and discovered psilocybin's chemical structure in 1958 while working at Sandoz Laboratories in Basel. The contemporary research programme at Basel focuses on fundamental pharmacology: receptor binding studies, pharmacokinetic modelling, dose-response characterisation, and metabolite identification. Hasler's group has been particularly important in characterising the pharmacokinetic profile of psilocin (the active metabolite of psilocybin) in humans — work that underpins dosing decisions in clinical trials worldwide. The Basel programme exemplifies the tradition of rigorous Swiss pharmacological science that produced LSD and psilocybin research in the first place.

Website: unibas.ch

Charité — Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Germany)

Key researchers: Gerrit Bos, M.D., and colleagues in the Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy; Felix Betzler, M.D. (harm reduction and clinical psychopharmacology).

Charité Berlin is Germany's largest and most prestigious university hospital and is emerging as the country's leading psychedelic research centre. Germany's drug regulations are complex — psilocybin is strictly scheduled — but research exemptions under German Narcotics Law (BtMG) have enabled IRB-approved trials. The Charité programme focuses on treatment-resistant depression (in parallel with COMPASS's European trial sites, some of which are located at Charité), psilocybin for addiction, and the clinical pharmacology of novel psychedelic compounds. Germany's well-funded public health research infrastructure and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) regulatory pathway make Charité an important node in the European clinical development ecosystem. Germany's federal government announced in 2024 that it would fund a national centre for psychedelic research, with Charité as a likely hub.

Website: charite.de

St. Vincent's Hospital Melbourne / PRISM — Psychedelic Research in Science and Medicine (Australia)

Key researchers: Margaret Ross, Ph.D. (co-director); Paul Liknaitzky, Ph.D. (Monash University, collaborating researcher); various clinicians at St. Vincent's.

Australia made global headlines in 2023 when the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) — Australia's equivalent of the FDA — formally approved psilocybin and MDMA for use in therapy by trained psychiatrists under the Authorised Prescriber scheme, making Australia the first country in the world to formally legalise psychedelic-assisted therapy in a clinical context. St. Vincent's Hospital Melbourne and the PRISM organisation are among the most active clinical research sites in Australia under this new framework. Research programmes include psilocybin for depression, PTSD, and addiction, as well as process studies examining therapist training, session preparation protocols, and outcome measurement tools adapted for the Australian population. Australia's unique regulatory status as the world's first country to permit prescription psychedelics creates an unparalleled naturalistic research environment that will yield real-world effectiveness data unavailable anywhere else.

Website: prism.net.au

How to Participate in Psilocybin Research

Participation in clinical trials is voluntary, closely monitored, and for most participants, a highly meaningful experience regardless of whether they receive psilocybin or placebo. Here is a comprehensive guide to finding and enrolling in a study.

Who Can Typically Volunteer?

Eligibility varies significantly by trial design, but most psilocybin studies share common parameters:

  • Age: Most trials enrol adults aged 21–75. Some cancer anxiety and addiction studies extend to 18+; some older adult studies set an upper limit of 65 or 70.
  • Medical health: Cardiovascular conditions (severe hypertension, recent heart attack, arrhythmia) often exclude participants because psilocybin transiently elevates heart rate and blood pressure. An ECG is typically required at screening.
  • Psychiatric history: Personal or first-degree family history of psychotic disorders (schizophrenia, bipolar I with psychosis, schizoaffective disorder) is a standard exclusion criterion — psilocybin can precipitate psychotic episodes in predisposed individuals. Borderline personality disorder may also be excluded in some protocols.
  • Medication washout: SSRI and SNRI antidepressants blunt psilocybin's subjective effects, possibly by downregulating 5-HT2A receptors. Most trials require a 2–6 week washout period off antidepressants before the dosing session. Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) are dangerous combined with serotonergic drugs and require longer washout. Lithium combined with psilocybin has been associated with seizures in case reports and is typically an absolute exclusion.
  • Substance use: Active substance use disorders (other than the one being treated, where applicable) may exclude participants. Current cannabis use is assessed variably.
  • Prior psychedelic experience: Some trials are open to participants with prior psychedelic experience; others specifically enrol psychedelic-naive volunteers to control for expectancy effects.

Finding a Trial: ClinicalTrials.gov Step-by-Step

  1. Go to clinicaltrials.gov
  2. In the search bar, type "psilocybin" and select "Interventional Studies" under Study Type.
  3. Filter by Status: "Recruiting" to see currently enrolling studies.
  4. Filter by Country or Distance from your location using the Participant Eligibility filters.
  5. Click on individual studies to see full eligibility criteria, contact information for the research coordinator, and the ClinicalTrials.gov NCT number.
  6. To ask about a specific trial, email the listed contact and mention the NCT number in your message.

Typical results: as of mid-2026, searching "psilocybin" AND "recruiting" on ClinicalTrials.gov returns 50–70 active trials worldwide.

The Screening Process

After you express interest in a trial, screening typically proceeds in stages:

  1. Phone pre-screen: A research coordinator asks basic eligibility questions (age, medications, psychiatric history) — usually 15–30 minutes. Many potential participants are screened out here.
  2. Online questionnaires: Standardised psychiatric scales (PHQ-9, GAD-7, AUDIT, etc.) and demographic information.
  3. In-person or telehealth psychiatric evaluation: A structured clinical interview (SCID or MINI) to confirm or rule out psychiatric diagnoses. This is the most critical screen.
  4. Medical history and physical exam: Including blood tests (liver function, complete blood count, metabolic panel) and ECG.
  5. Informed consent: A detailed review of all study procedures, risks, and rights — including the right to withdraw at any time without penalty.

What Participation Looks Like: A Typical Timeline

For a Phase 2 psilocybin for depression trial:

  • Weeks -8 to -4: Screening visits. Washout from antidepressants if required.
  • Weeks -2 to 0 (Preparation sessions): 2–3 sessions (typically 60–90 minutes each) with your assigned therapist guides. These establish rapport, discuss intentions, prepare you for the experience and how to navigate challenging moments, and review the study procedures.
  • Dosing day (approximately 8 hours): You arrive fasted. A capsule of psilocybin (or placebo) is administered. You lie on a couch, wear eyeshades, listen to a curated music playlist, and have two trained therapists present throughout. The experience is internally directed — therapists are there for support, not to guide your experience. The acute effects last approximately 4–6 hours, after which you spend time settling before being transported home.
  • Integration sessions (1–3 sessions over 2–4 weeks): Psychotherapy to help make sense of and contextualise the experience, and apply any insights to your daily life.
  • Follow-up assessments: Depression scales, functional assessments, and blood draws at 1 week, 4 weeks, 3 months, and sometimes 6 months or 1 year.

Compensation

Most Phase 2 and Phase 3 psilocybin trials compensate participants for their time. Compensation varies by site and trial complexity but typically ranges from $50–150 per session attended, with total compensation across all visits often in the range of $500–1,500 for a full study. Compensation is not intended to be an inducement that overrides a reasonable risk-benefit calculation — IRBs scrutinise payment levels to ensure this.

Risks You Should Expect in Informed Consent

Informed consent documents in psilocybin trials typically describe the following risks:

  • Anxiety, fear, or psychologically distressing experiences during the session ("bad trip")
  • Transient elevation of blood pressure and heart rate during the acute phase
  • Nausea (common, especially in the first 30–90 minutes)
  • Headache (common in the 24 hours after a session)
  • Rare risk of persisting perception disorder (HPPD — visual disturbances lasting beyond the session)
  • Rare risk of precipitating a psychotic episode, particularly in those with predisposing factors (which is why the psychiatric screen is so important)
  • Emotional vulnerability in the days following the session

Questions to Ask Before Enrolling

  • What is the dosing protocol — how many sessions, what dose range?
  • Will I need to stop my current medications? For how long?
  • Who are my assigned therapist guides and what is their training?
  • What support is available if I have a difficult experience during or after the session?
  • What happens if I become distressed and want to stop partway through?
  • Is there an unblinding procedure available after the trial ends?
  • Will my participation be confidential and not shared with my employer or insurance company?
  • What are the plans if I develop significant adverse effects?

The Research Funding Landscape

NIH Funding: From Zero to Significant

For decades, NIH funding for psychedelic research was effectively zero — not because of a formal ban, but because no programme officer was willing to champion grants that might be seen as politically controversial. The change began around 2020–2021 as Phase 2 trial results accumulated and congressional interest grew. By 2022–2025, NIH's National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), and National Cancer Institute (NCI) had collectively approved approximately $5 million per year in psilocybin and related psychedelic research grants — modest by NIH standards but a dramatic change from near-zero. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine published a major review of psychedelic research in 2024 that recommended NIH substantially increase investment. NIH has also funded a psychedelic research network (the Center to Advance the Science of Psilocybin, or CASP) to coordinate multi-site trials.

Private Philanthropy

Private philanthropy remains the dominant funding mechanism for US psychedelic research. The Tim Ferriss network (Ferriss himself, plus individuals he connected with Hopkins and other institutions) contributed the crucial early funding — the $17 million that launched the Hopkins Center in 2019 was almost entirely private. Other key donors include the Steven and Alexandra Cohen Foundation (which has funded both Hopkins and NYU), David Bronner's Dr. Bronner's company (a consistent supporter of psychedelic research and policy reform), and the Riverstyx Foundation. Usona Institute is itself a philanthropically funded entity. This private dependence is both a strength (independence from government political winds) and a vulnerability (susceptibility to shifts in donor priorities).

International Government Funding

Outside the US, government science funding agencies have been more active: Australia's National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) funded trials prior to the TGA's 2023 approval; the UK's Medical Research Council has supported Imperial College trials; the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) has funded Maastricht's microdosing work; and the Wellcome Trust (UK) has provided grants to psychedelic research programmes. The EU's Horizon programme has begun funding multi-country psychedelic research consortia.

Corporate and Venture Funding

The psychedelic biotech sector attracted significant venture capital between 2018 and 2022, with companies including COMPASS Pathways (NASDAQ-listed), atai Life Sciences (NASDAQ), MindMed, Cybin, Small Pharma, and others raising hundreds of millions of dollars. The sector experienced a significant correction in 2022–2023 as broader biotech markets declined. As of 2025–2026, the sector is more consolidated, with companies focusing resources on their most advanced programmes (COMPASS's Phase 3 TRD trial, MindMed's LSD programme) rather than broad early-stage exploration.

Public-Benefit vs. Commercial Tension

The central tension in psychedelic research funding is between public-benefit models (Usona, Heffter, MAPS, Beckley) and commercial models (COMPASS, atai, MindMed). The public-benefit model prioritises access, affordability, and open-source knowledge; the commercial model provides the large capital investment needed for Phase 3 trials and FDA approval but introduces incentives around exclusivity and pricing. Observers note that this tension is not unique to psychedelics — it mirrors conflicts in other drug development areas — but is particularly acute here given that psilocybin is a natural substance that has existed for millions of years and arguably should not be subject to proprietary control. The outcome of this debate will significantly determine the cost and accessibility of psilocybin therapy if it receives regulatory approval.

Frequently Asked Questions about Psilocybin Research Institutions

What is the difference between a research institution and a retreat centre when it comes to psilocybin?

Research institutions — such as Johns Hopkins, Imperial College London, and NYU Langone — conduct FDA or EMA-regulated clinical trials with IRB oversight, rigorous protocols, published results, and strict safety screening. Participation is free (and usually compensated), and all procedures are documented and reviewed. Retreat centres, which operate legally in the Netherlands (truffles), Jamaica, Mexico, and other jurisdictions, are unregulated by pharmaceutical authorities. They may offer genuine therapeutic value but without the safety screening, standardised protocols, follow-up monitoring, or peer-reviewed outcome data that clinical research provides. Retreat centres are not a substitute for clinical trials and carry higher risks for people with certain medical or psychiatric conditions.

Can I participate in a psilocybin trial if I am already taking antidepressants?

In most cases, no — at least not without a washout period. SSRIs and SNRIs blunt psilocybin's effects by downregulating 5-HT2A receptors, which are psilocybin's primary site of action. Most trials require participants to taper and discontinue antidepressants 2–6 weeks before the dosing session, under medical supervision. This washout must be done carefully and with the guidance of your prescribing physician. Stopping antidepressants abruptly is dangerous and can precipitate discontinuation syndrome or a relapse of depression. Some trials specifically study people currently taking SSRIs to understand pharmacodynamic interactions, but these are exploratory. Always consult your psychiatrist before discontinuing any medication to enrol in a trial.

How do I know if a psilocybin trial is legitimate and safe?

Legitimate trials are registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (USA) or EU Clinical Trials Register, have been approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB) or Ethics Committee, and are conducted at accredited medical institutions. The research team should be identifiable with published credentials. Legitimate trials never charge you money to participate; you should never pay to enrol in a clinical trial. If someone asks you to pay to "be part of a psilocybin study," this is a red flag. Always verify the NCT number at ClinicalTrials.gov and confirm that the study is listed as recruiting, not completed or withdrawn. You can also contact the institution's research department directly to verify a trial's existence.

What did the Johns Hopkins Center achieve that other institutions had not done before?

Johns Hopkins, under Roland Griffiths, conducted the first IRB-approved, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of psilocybin in healthy volunteers in the modern era (published 2006). Previous research — including work by Timothy Leary and others in the 1960s — lacked the rigorous methodology, blinding, and institutional oversight that Hopkins brought. The 2006 study established that psilocybin could safely occasion profound mystical experiences in psychologically healthy adults and that these experiences had lasting positive effects on attitudes and wellbeing. This publication is widely credited with opening the door for subsequent clinical research. Hopkins also became the first US institution to establish a dedicated psychedelic research centre (2019) and conducted the first rigorous trial of psilocybin for smoking cessation and for major depressive disorder.

Why did Robin Carhart-Harris move from Imperial College to UCSF?

Robin Carhart-Harris joined UCSF in 2021, taking a position as Director of Psychedelics Research within the Neuroscape neurotechnology centre. Several factors appear to have motivated this move. UCSF offered substantially more resources for his research programme — including access to Neuroscape's advanced EEG and neurotechnology infrastructure that had no equivalent at Imperial. The San Francisco Bay Area's proximity to both academic neuroscience (Berkeley, Stanford) and the major philanthropic and biotech funding ecosystem supporting psychedelic research also offered advantages. California's progressive regulatory environment and the proximity to potential regulatory changes (Oregon passed Measure 109 in 2020, decriminalising psilocybin therapy) created a supportive research climate. Carhart-Harris continues to collaborate with his former Imperial colleagues, and the two groups maintain active research partnerships.

What is COMPASS Pathways and why is its patent strategy controversial?

COMPASS Pathways is a publicly traded pharmaceutical company (NASDAQ: CMPS) founded in 2016 in London. It is running the largest psilocybin clinical trial in history (Phase 3 COMP006, targeting 900+ participants) for treatment-resistant depression. The controversy concerns COMPASS's intellectual property strategy. Critics note that psilocybin is a naturally occurring compound that has been studied scientifically since the 1950s and used in indigenous contexts for millennia. COMPASS has filed patents not only on a specific crystalline form of synthetic psilocybin (Polymorph A) but also on aspects of the therapy delivery — including the positioning of patients during sessions, the physical arrangement of the therapeutic space, and aspects of the therapist training model. Critics, including Tim Ferriss (who openly tweeted his concerns), argue that these patents could be used to prevent competitors from providing psilocybin therapy in ways that compete with COMPASS's commercial model, potentially restricting access and inflating costs. COMPASS has stated the patents are defensive and will not be used to block legitimate research or therapy. The debate remains unresolved.

What is the Usona Institute and how does it differ from commercial psychedelic companies?

Usona Institute is a non-profit 501(c)(3) medical research organisation founded in Madison, Wisconsin in 2014. Its mission is to develop psilocybin as a medicine that is widely accessible and not proprietary. Unlike COMPASS Pathways (publicly traded, commercially oriented) or atai Life Sciences (VC-backed), Usona does not intend to patent psilocybin or the therapeutic procedures surrounding its use. Usona holds an FDA Investigational New Drug (IND) application for synthetic psilocybin in major depressive disorder and completed the pivotal PSIL201 Phase 2 RCT (n=104, published Lancet eClinicalMedicine 2023), which showed significant antidepressant effects. Usona is now running Phase 3 trials. If psilocybin reaches FDA approval via the Usona pathway, it could theoretically be available as a low-cost generic psychiatric medicine rather than a branded pharmaceutical with premium pricing — a significant public health consideration.

What did Australia do that made it unique in the world of psilocybin policy?

In February 2023, Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) — the equivalent of the FDA — formally approved two psychedelic substances for use in therapy: MDMA for PTSD and psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression. This made Australia the first country in the world to formally approve psychedelic-assisted therapy as a clinical practice rather than merely as a research activity. Under the Authorised Prescriber scheme, psychiatrists who meet specific training requirements can obtain government authorisation to prescribe psilocybin to patients with treatment-resistant depression. This regulatory change creates a unique naturalistic research opportunity: real-world effectiveness data from actual clinical practice, not just controlled trials. Institutions like PRISM in Melbourne are capturing this data systematically. The Australian model is being watched closely by regulators in Europe, Canada, and the US as a potential template.

How has NIH funding for psychedelic research changed in recent years?

For most of the period from 1970 to 2020, NIH funding for human psychedelic research was effectively zero. The few studies that existed (including Griffiths' 2006 Hopkins trial) were funded almost entirely by private philanthropy. The change began around 2019–2021 as Phase 2 trial data accumulated and political will shifted. By 2022, NIH was funding approximately $5 million per year in psychedelic research — still modest relative to the total NIH budget but a dramatic shift. NIDA (National Institute on Drug Abuse), NIMH (National Institute of Mental Health), and NCI (National Cancer Institute) are the primary institutes funding psychedelic research. In 2024, NIH launched a coordinating network for psychedelic research to facilitate multi-site trials. The National Academies of Sciences report in 2024 explicitly recommended a significant increase in NIH funding for the field. Congressional interest has also grown, with bipartisan legislation proposed to facilitate psychedelic research for veterans with PTSD.

What is the Heffter Research Institute and why does it matter historically?

The Heffter Research Institute was founded in 1993 by a small group of scientists — David Nichols, Mark Geyer, Charles Grob, and Dennis McKenna — at a time when psychedelic research was essentially frozen and government funding was unobtainable. Heffter operates as a lean grant-making organisation that identifies and funds the most meritorious academic research proposals at partner universities, without maintaining its own laboratories. Its most consequential contribution was partially funding Roland Griffiths' 2006 study at Johns Hopkins — the paper that is universally credited with reopening the modern era of psilocybin research. Without Heffter's willingness to fund research that no government agency would touch in the early 2000s, the entire subsequent body of work at Hopkins, NYU, and institutions worldwide might have been delayed by a decade or more. Heffter also helped fund NYU's alcohol use disorder programme and Charles Grob's cancer anxiety study at Harbor-UCLA. It remains active today and continues to fund research at partner institutions.

Related Resources on Psilobase

Last reviewed: June 2026. Clinical trial information changes frequently — always verify current trial status on ClinicalTrials.gov.