Abstract
At ICPR 2022, Dr. Friederike Holze will present the preliminary results of the first study investigating the effect of LSD-assisted therapy in people suffering from psychiatric anxiety disorders. She will present the development of the study, the background of psychedelic research in Switzerland and venture a view into the future of LSD research.
Biography
Dr. Friederike Holze received her MSc in Pharmacy from the University of Basel in 2016. During her Master’s she worked in the Psychopharmacology research lab of Prof. Matthias E. Liechti at the University Hospital Basel where she conducted a clinical study investigating the emotional and social cognitive effects of alcohol. In 2017, she rejoined the research group of Prof. Matthias Liechti where she received her PhD in 2021 and where she is currently affiliated as a postdoctoral researcher.
Her research interests lie in the pharmacology of psychoactive substances, in particular psychedelics. She conducted several Phase I studies investigating the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of LSD and established a dose-effect relationship in doses from 5-200 µg. Additionally, she described the distinct acute pharmacological effects of LSD, MDMA and d-amphetamine. In this function, she has accompanied over 200 psychedelic experiences in healthy test subjects. Furthermore, she is involved in a Phase II study investigating the potential therapeutic effects of LSD in patients suffering from anxiety disorders without relation to somatic illnesses.
From 2017 to 2021, Dr. Holze and a team of therapists conducted a phase II trial in collaboration with Prof. M. Liechti’s research group at the University Hospital of Basel, investigating LSD-assisted therapy in people suffering from anxiety symptoms in severe somatic diseases or in psychiatric anxiety disorders. The team used a double-blind, randomised, 2-period, cross-over design in 40 patients employing well-validated and internationally established questionnaires and tools. This is the largest study investigating LSD as therapy in recent times, and it is an example of successful research collaboration between university know-how and private practice hands-on psychiatric research.
Dr. Holze will present the development of the study, the background of psychedelic research in Switzerland, show the (yet unpublished) results, and venture a view into the future of LSD research.
Other Speakers at ICPR 2022
Founder and Executive Director at MAPS, the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, United States
Psychologist at Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research, United States
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About ICPR
The Interdisciplinary Conference on Psychedelic Research (ICPR) is Europe’s leading academic conference dedicated to advancing psychedelic research and therapies organised by the OPEN Foundation since 2010. ICPR is a biennial conference focused on high-quality scientific and scholarly research into psychedelics. ICPR 2022 is our fifth event. After our hugely successful online conference in 2020, we are returning to the prestigious Philharmonie Theatre for an in-person event! ICPR will take place in Haarlem (next to Amsterdam) from September 22nd to 24th, 2022.
