News Mentions for the week of February 5, 2024

The Office of Community Engagement has announced 21 projects selected for its Community Engagement Impact Program. Congratulations to Ryan Matlow, clinical associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, and project co-lead N. Ewen Wang, for their project, "Colibrí Service and Participatory Research Action Program" which aims to increase capacity and institutional resources for coordinating projects and acting as a full partner in conducting participatory action research through a a partnership between the Stanford Medicine Immigrant Child Health Program and Ayudando Latinos a Soñar.

The International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) will present this year’s ISSCR Momentum Award to Sergiu Paşca, the Kenneth T. Norris, Jr. Professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and the Uytengsu Director of Stanford Brain Organogenesis. The award recognizes the exceptional achievements of a mid-career investigator whose innovative research has established a major area of stem cell-related research with a strong trajectory for future success. Congratulations, Dr. Pasca!

After a failed attempt to decriminalize a short list of psychedelics last year, state Sen. Scott Wiener is reintroducing legislation to make California the third state to legalize psychedelic-assisted therapy for adults. Anna Lembke, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, is quoted on the subject.

At a convention on “future proofing” science, participants stressed that institutions can provide training, establish policies and create a culture that rewards rigorous and reproducible studies. Ruth O’Hara, senior associate dean for research and the Lowell W. and Josephine Q. Berry Professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, is mentioned.

A drug once seen as a potential blockbuster in treating Alzheimer's disease is being shut down by Biogen. The drug maker announced this week it will stop selling Aduhelm, which debuted in 2021 to the commercial market and also end a study of the drug needed for FDA approval. For a look at the implications, KCBS Radio's Bret Burkhart and Patti Reising spoke with Keith Humphreys, the Esther Ting Memorial professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences.

When your mind is wandering, your brain’s “default mode” network is active. Its discovery 20 years ago inspired a raft of research into networks of brain regions and how they interact with each other. Vinod Menon, the Rachael L. and Walter F. Nichols, MD professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, is mentioned.

The facility, also known as a safe injection center, will be the first in Rhode Island and the only one in the U.S. outside New York City to operate openly. Keith Humphreys, the Esther Ting Memorial professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, provides comment.