The Beckley Sessions

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Jordi Riba

Jordi will present his group’s most recent findings on the therapeutic potential of ayahuasca. Psychedelics, and ayahuasca in particular, are powerful substances with a demonstrated capacity to change pathological patterns of thought and behaviour, such as those observed in depression and addiction. Evidence that the human central nervous system undergoes functional and structural changes throughout adult life has overturned the old paradigm of an immutable brain. As shown in studies in animals, new neurons are constantly being born and integrated into neural circuits in a process known as neurogenesis. The beneficial effects of ayahuasca result from its ability to continue to modulate brain function beyond the acute psychedelic state.

About Jordi Riba:

Dr. Riba holds a Ph.D. in Pharmacology and leads the Human Neuropsychopharmacology Research Group at Sant Pau Hospital in Barcelona. He has studied ayahuasca for over fifteen years and has published nearly forty journal articles and book chapters on the subject (subjects include psychedelics, psychostimulants, cannabinoids, and kappa receptor agonists). He has supervised two doctorate theses on the acute and long-term effects of ayahuasca in humans, and collaborated in the first clinical studies involving ayahuasca administration to patients with depression.