Rethinking Psychedelics, Octopuses on MDMA, and The Master Key of Metaplasticity | Dr. Gül Dölen

Associate professor of neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and a pioneer in psychedelics research, known for discovering a novel mechanism for therapeutic applications of psychedelics.

An ethologist who described the concept of critical periods in 1935 by studying imprinting behavior in snow geese.

A neurologist at Johns Hopkins collaborating with Dr. Dölen on stroke recovery research and developing rodent models for motor recovery critical periods.

A biologist who received NSF funding to study bacteria in Yellowstone thermal vents, leading to the discovery of the enzyme necessary for PCR tests.

An eminent octopus researcher whose experiments on octopus hunting behavior were observed by Dr. Dölen, leading to insights on theory of mind in octopuses.

An author whose works, including 'Bullshit Jobs' and 'The Dawn of Everything,' are highly recommended for their perspective on societal structures and history.

His research group showed that LSD has an unusually long off-rate from the serotonin 2A receptor, leading to its prolonged effects.

A philosopher who, over a hundred years ago, pointed out the 'noetic property' of psychedelics: the feeling that profound truth has been revealed.

Author of 'Invisible Women,' a book highlighting gender data bias and its societal costs.

Mentioned metaphorically by Tim Ferriss to illustrate the danger of a scientist becoming too convinced by their own experiences with psychedelics and losing objectivity.

Author of 'The Immortality Key,' a book that deeply resonated with Dr. Dölen.

A renowned biochemist and self-experimenter in psychedelics, known for compounds like PiHKAL and TiHKAL. Dr. Dölen acknowledges his contributions but challenges his human-centric approach to psychedelic research.

A colleague at Johns Hopkins working with Steve Zeiler on stroke rehabilitation, emphasizing non-goal-directed play in physical therapy, which aligns with psychedelic-assisted therapy.

Started Dr. Dölen's department at Johns Hopkins and discovered many neurotransmitter receptors, providing a broad historical definition of psychedelics.

A branch of philosophy that considers the mind from metaphysical and epistemological points of view, asking questions like 'what is the mind?' and 'how do we know mind?'.

A part of the limbic system where oxytocin metaplasticity is restored by MDMA, crucial for the social critical period, distinct from classical cortical critical periods.

A neurobiological process of anticipating what someone else might be thinking, akin to playing poker, and seeing the world from their point of view. It develops in children and is impaired in some conditions like autism, yet enhanced in psychopaths.

A condition for which there seems to be a correlation between the age of the father and the likelihood of offspring developing it, contrasting autism's lack of age-dependent correlation.

A receptor class where ibogaine, among other psychedelics, has high affinity, despite not typically being associated with pleasurable effects.

The first identified and most common genetic cause of autism, caused by a mutation in the fmr1 gene, characterized by an exaggerated mGluR signaling.

A brain region commonly studied in fMRI images related to psychedelics, but whose involvement in generalizable rules of behavior is challenged by Dr. Dölen's octopus work.

An approach coined by Dr. Dölen, standing for Psychedelic Healing Adjunct Therapy Harnessing Opened Malleability, emphasizing the use of psychedelics as adjunct therapy for various disorders.

A condition mentioned to emphasize that autism does not have a similar age-dependent correlation with maternal age.

A receptor identified by Solomon Snyder, often considered mediated for psychedelic effects by chemists, though Dr. Dölen questions its singular importance for therapeutic outcomes.

A fast neurotransmitter receptor, blocked by magnesium, serving as a natural coincidence detector crucial for memory encoding, and whose subunit composition changes during critical periods.

A biochemical pathway triggered when a G-protein-coupled receptor is activated for too long, signaling the cell to internalize receptors due to potential toxic damage.

The gene encoding Fragile X, a mutation in which is the most common cause of autism. The protein it encodes regulates 20-25% of other autism genes.

A hormone involved in the pro-social component of MDMA, with MDMA restoring oxytocin metaplasticity in the nucleus accumbens.

A type of glutamate receptor whose signaling is thought to be altered in Fragile X syndrome. A negative allosteric modulator of this receptor was tested in human trials for autism.

A large family of receptors that most psychedelic drugs (except ketamine and PCP) act upon, initiating biochemical signaling pathways.

A plant known for its active compound salvinorin A, a kappa opioid agonist, causing dysphoric subjective experiences.

A psychedelic drug found to reopen critical periods for social reward learning and other types of plasticity.

A psychedelic drug that reopens critical periods, also discussed in relation to NMDA receptors and memory impairment.

A psychedelic drug capable of reopening critical periods for social reward learning.

The active compound in Salvia Divinorum, a kappa opioid agonist.

A psychedelic drug shown to reopen critical periods, despite not being primarily pro-social.

A molecular biology technique that would not be possible without the enzyme discovered from bacteria found in thermal vents, funded by the NSF.

Dr. Dölen's online presence where more information about her lab and research can be found.

A book by Brian Moresku, highly loved by Dr. Dölen, influencing her Halloween decorations and sparking interest in archaeochemistry.

A book by Caroline Criado Perez, recommended for its data-driven approach to feminism, showing the societal cost of ignoring data about women.

A large book by David Graeber, recommended for its insights into human history, including psychedelic uses in other cultures.

A book written by Alexander Shulgin and his wife, detailing numerous psychedelic compounds.

A book by David Graeber that Dr. Dölen found cathartic while dealing with academic bureaucracy.

A book written by Alexander Shulgin and his wife, detailing numerous psychedelic compounds.

A newsletter from UC Berkeley that featured Dr. Dölen.

The institution where Dr. Dölen earned her MD PhD.

A U.S. government agency that funds scientific research and education, mentioned for historically funding curiosity-based science leading to technological breakthroughs.

The institution where Dr. Dölen is an associate professor of neuroscience and conducts her research.

The regulatory body that MAPS worked with to establish guidelines for clinical trials around psychedelics, shifting towards combined drug and psychotherapy models.

The institution associated with The Microdose newsletter.

A primary funding source for academic research, noted for becoming more conservative and challenging for junior scientists to secure grants.

The institution where Dr. Dölen earned her MD PhD and carried out seminal work on critical periods and autism.

Credited for their hard work in convincing the FDA to design clinical trials that pair psychedelics with psychotherapy, recognizing that the drugs alone are not sufficient.

A psychedelic drug that reopens critical periods and has a long duration of effects, also acts on serotonin transporters and Kappa opioid receptors.

An ancient city in Turkey, close to Dr. Dölen's mother's house, which she plans to visit to examine Hecate carvings and potentially collect soil samples based on themes from 'The Immortality Key'.