Serotonergic Psychedelics: Mushroom for discussion

Psychoactive compounds that change brain function have always been a part of the human journey. In this talk, we will trace the historical usage of serotonergic psychedelics from the earliest reports 10-12,000 years ago to the modern history of their usage. These potent compounds change sensory perception, influence neuronal plasticity, and modulate mood. This talk will also discuss the renewal of interest in the potent therapeutic effects exerted by serotonergic psychedelics.

About the Speaker:
Vidita received her undergraduate training in Life Science and Biochemistry at St. Xavier’s College in Mumbai. She obtained her doctoral degree in Neuroscience at Yale University with the late Professor Ronald Duman, and after postdoctoral fellowships at the Karolinska Institute and Oxford University, she returned to a faculty position at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in 2000. She is a Senior Professor at TIFR and a fellow of all three Indian Science academies. She received the National Bioscientist Award in 2012, the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award in Medical Sciences in 2015, and the Infosys Prize for Life Sciences in 2022. She was awarded the Nature Award for Excellence in Mentorship in India in 2019.  Her research group is interested in understanding the neurocircuitry of emotion, its modulation by life experience, and the alterations in emotional neurocircuitry that underlie complex psychiatric disorders like depression. She is committed to enhancing equity, diversity, and inclusion in academia.