Keynote Presentation

Dr. Cody J. Wenthur, PharmD, PhD

Psychedelic Polypharmacology: Implications for Behavior and Mental Health

Psychedelics and related compounds are currently being investigated as adjuncts to psychotherapy for psychiatric indications, including depression, anxiety, substance use disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder. While this drug-assisted therapy approach has demonstrated rapid and durable benefit for many trial participants, there remain significant outstanding questions regarding the mechanisms by which long-term behavioral change occurs. In addition to the psychological and sociological factors that can impact psychedelic outcomes, most psychedelics also have target binding and functional activity profiles that extend well beyond a single target, creating a complex overall picture of these compounds’ actions. This lecture will cover the application of chemical, pharmacological, behavioral, and neuroscience approaches to assess polypharmacologic contributions to the functional profiles of ketamine and psilocybin, with a particular focus on how the production of active metabolites, as well as system level effects arising from stress-associated hormonal changes, contribute to their potential mechanisms of action. 

Biography

Dr. Cody J. Wenthur is an innovative, translational investigator in psychopharmacology who has been on the UW–Madison faculty since 2018. His work is focused on improving our understanding of the basis for beneficial and detrimental effects of psychedelics, opioids, cannabinoids, and other neuroplasticity-inducing approaches in the context of novel therapeutic approaches for promoting and maintaining mental health. This includes study of the impact of both drug- and environmentally-based contributors to participant experiences with psychedelic-assisted therapy approaches, with a particular eye toward understanding approaches that may enhance equitable access in the event of approval for therapeutic use. His research program has received grant and fellowship support from NIGMS, NIDA, NIMH, independent foundations, and philanthropic funds, and the resulting findings have been published in leading journals such as Nature and PNAS. In addition to his research efforts on psychedelics, Dr. Wenthur also supports novel graduate education opportunities in neuropharmacology, including active service as the founding director of the Psychoactive Pharmaceutical Investigation Master’s program at UW-Madison.