Petros D. Petridis, MD

My research background is multidisciplinary, spanning psychiatry, biomedical engineering, and neuroimaging. Over the past five years, I have integrated these disciplines to investigate how psychoactive compounds such as psilocybin and ketamine exert their therapeutic effects on the brain. My work aims to facilitate clinical translation and contribute to the development of a new class of psychiatric treatments that provide rapid and lasting relief for patients with difficult-to-treat conditions.

To advance this translational focus, I have contributed to clinical trials at the NYU Langone Center for Psychedelic Medicine, exploring psilocybin as a treatment for depression, alcohol use disorder, and cancer-related psychiatric distress. This experience has provided me with a strong foundation in clinical trial design, data analysis, and psychedelic-assisted therapy, further deepening my expertise in developing innovative, evidence-based interventions.

More recently, I have employed advanced neuroimaging methods—including functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS)—to elucidate the neural mechanisms underlying psychoactive compounds. By integrating neuroimaging with pharmacology, my research seeks to:

• Develop objective, brain-based biomarkers of target engagement and treatment response.
• Identify neural mechanisms mediating the effects of psychedelic and other rapid-acting therapeutics.
• Establish dose-response relationships linking neural activity to clinical outcomes.

Ultimately, my goal is to translate these neurobiological insights into a precision medicine framework, delivering personalized and highly effective interventions for patients with severe, treatment-resistant psychiatric conditions.