Franz X. Vollenweider is currently the Director of the Neurophenomenology of Consciousness research unit at the Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUH-ZH) and Professor Emeritus at University of Zürich. He also serves as Director of the Heffter Research Center Zürich for Consciousness Studies (HRC-ZH), which he founded in 1998 and continues to lead. Until 2019, he held the roles of Co-Director of the Center for Psychiatric Research and Director of the Neuropsychopharmacology and Brain Imaging Unit at the PUH-ZH.

Franz earned his MD degree from the University of Zurich in 1986. He completed his doctoral thesis in experimental medicine at the Institute of Toxicology, a joint Institution of the University and ETH Zurich. He subsequently conducted postdoctoral research at the Brain Research Institute of the University of Zürich, focusing on the neurochemistry of the glutamatergic neurotransmitter system. In 1989, he joined the Research Department of Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUH-ZH). In parallel, he investigated the neuronal mechanism of psychedelics and related compounds using functional neuroimaging techniques at the PET Centre of the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI-ETH). He completed his clinical training - including a Freudian-style training analysis - at the PUH-ZH in 1995, earning board certification (FMH) in psychiatry and psychotherapy. In 1996, he founded the Neuropsychopharmacology and Brain Imaging research unit.

Franz Vollenweider has served on numerous international research review committees and is currently member of the Board of Directors of the Heffter Research Institute (USA). He is also a member of the Scientific Advisory Boards of the USONA Institute (USA) and the Mind Foundation (Berlin).

Since 1992, Franz Vollenweider has focused on investigating the psychological and neural foundations of pharmacologically and non-pharmacologically induced altered states of consciousness (ASCs), and their relevance to the pathophysiology of psychotic and affective disorders. His research has centered on the molecular, emotional and cognitive mechanisms of action of classic psychedelics such as psilocybin and LSD in humans, as well as related compounds like MDMA. His early pioneering work identified the 5-HT2A receptor as key mediator of the subjective psychedelic experience and a range of specific perceptual, emotional and cognitive effects in humans. Subsequent studies contributed to the development of the Cortico-Striato-Thalamo-Cortical (CSTC) loop model, a neurobiological framework for understanding altered states of consciousness.

Building on neuroscience-informed models, his more recent work has explored the acute and long-term effects of psychedelics on self-awareness, emotion regulation, and social interaction—both in healthy individuals and in patients with depression or substance use disorders – with the aim of developing more targeted treatments for these conditions. His research group integrates concepts from cognitive neuroscience and systems biology, employing advanced neuroimaging techniques such as positron emission tomography (PET), functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), electroencephalography (EEG) including event-related potentials (ERP), and brain stimulation methods such as transcranial magnetic stimulation combined with EEG (TMS-EEG).

Another major focus involves the development of translational models that enable the investigation of clinically relevant drug effects under controlled conditions in animal models and healthy participants—offering an alternative to studies involving patient populations. Since 2020, in collaboration with Professor Christopher Pryce (PLATRAD), he has studied the effect of classic and new psychedelics on neuroplasticity and its relevance to behavioral change in various animal models of psychopathology. An additional line of research examines the extent to which the combination of contemplative practices with psychedelics may yield synergistic therapeutic benefits—particularly in relation to personality development and mental health.

To date, Dr. Vollenweider has authored over 200 original peer-reviewed research articles, several book chapters, and a monograph on the mechanisms of action of psychedelics and related psychoactive compounds. His publications span topics including the neurobiology of altered states of consciousness, the pathophysiology of schizophrenia, and the therapeutic potential of substances such as psilocybin, LSD, and MDMA.

His research has been supported by multiple grants from the Swiss National Science Foundation, the Swiss Federal Health Office, and the Heffter Research Institute (USA), as well as by awards from NARSAD (USA), the Fetzer Research Institute (USA), and the EU-funded research program ERA-NET NEURON Consortium. He has received numerous honors, including the Achievement Award of the Swiss Society of Psychiatry (1990), the Heffter Research Institute Award (1997), the Georg-Friedrich Götz Prize of the University of Zurich (2000), and the British Association of Psychopharmacology Prize (2002). He has also been recognized with multiple awards from the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (1999, 2003, 2010, 2016), among others.

Jungwirth, J., von Rotz, R., Dziobek, I., Vollenweider F.X. & Preller K.H. (2025) Psilocybin increases emotional empathy in patients with major depression. Mol Psychiatry, 30, 2665-2672.

Rieser, N. M., Bitar, R., Halm, S., Rossgoderer, C., Gubser, L. P., Thévenaz, M., Kreis, Y., von Rotz, R., Nordt, C., Visentini, M., Moujaes, F., Engeli, E. J. E., Ort, A., Seifritz, E., Vollenweider, F. X., Herdener, M., & Preller, K. H. (2025). Psilocybin-assisted therapy for relapse prevention in alcohol use disorder: a phase 2 randomized clinical trial. EClinicalMedicine 2025, 82, 103149.

Stoliker, D., Preller, K. H., Novelli, L., Anticevic, A., Egan, G. F., Vollenweider, F. X., & Razi, A. (2025). Neural mechanisms of psychedelic visual imagery. Mol Psychiatry, 30, 1259-1266.

Yaden, D. B., Graziosi, M., Owen, A. M., Agin-Liebes, G., Aaronson, S. T. et al. (2025). A Field-Wide Review and Analysis of Study Materials Used in Psilocybin Trials: Assessment of Two Decades of Research. Psychedelic Medicine 2025, 3, 1-18.

Thomann, J., Kolaczynska, K. E., Stoeckmann, O. V., Rudin, D., Vizeli, P., Hoener, M. C., Pryce, C. R., Vollenweider, F. X., Liechti, M. E., & Duthaler, U. (2024). In vitro and in vivo metabolism of psilocybin's active metabolite psilocin. Front Pharmacol, 15, 1391689.

Casanova A.F., A. Ort A., Smallridge J.W., Preller K.H., Seifritz E. and Vollenweider F.X. (2024) The influence of psilocybin on subconscious and conscious emotional learning (2024), iScience 2024, 27, 1-13.

Moujaes, F., Rieser, N. M., Phillips, C., de Matos, N. M. P., Brugger, M., Durler, P., Smigielski, L., Stampfli, P., Seifritz, E., Vollenweider, F. X., Anticevic, A., & Preller, K. H. (2023). Comparing Neural Correlates of Consciousness: From Psychedelics to Hypnosis, and Meditation (2024). Biol Psychiatry Cogn Neurosci Neuroimaging, 9, 533-543.

von Rotz, R., Schindowski, E. M., Jungwirth, J., Schuldt, A., Rieser, N. M., Zahoranszky, K., Seifritz, E., Nowak, A., Nowak, P., Jancke, L., Preller, K. H., & Vollenweider, F. X. (2023). Single-dose psilocybin-assisted therapy in major depressive disorder: A placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomised clinical trial. The Lancet: EClinicalMedicine, 56, 101809.

Shinn, M., Hu, A., Turner, L., Noble, S., Preller, K. H., Ji, J. L., Moujaes, F., Achard, S., Scheinost, D., Constable, R. T., Krystal, J. H., Vollenweider, F. X., Lee, D., Anticevic, A., Bullmore, E. T., & Murray, J. D. (2023). Functional brain networks reflect spatial and temporal autocorrelation. Nat Neurosci, 26(5), 867-878.

Moujaes, F., Preller, K. H., Ji, J. L., Murray, J. D., Berkovitch, L., Vollenweider, F. X., & Anticevic, A. (2023). Towards mapping neuro-behavioral heterogeneity of psychedelic neurobiology in humans. Biol Psychiatry, 93(12):1061-70.

Ort, A., Smallridge, J. W., Sarasso, S., Casarotto, S., von Rotz, R., Casanova, A., Seifritz, E., Preller, K. H., Tononi, G., & Vollenweider, F. X. (2023). TMS-EEG and resting-state EEG applied to Altered States of Consciousness: Oscillations, Complexity, and Phenomenology. iScience, 2023; 26(5).

Vollenweider FX, Preller KH (2020) Psychedelic drugs: neurobiology and potential for treatment of psychiatric disorders. Nat Rev Neurosci, 21(11), 611-624.

Smigielski L, Scheidegger M, Kometer M, Vollenweider FX (2019) Psilocybin-assisted mindfulness training modulates self-consciousness and brain default mode network connectivity with lasting effects. Neuroimage 196:207-215.

For comprehensive list see: ‪Franz X. Vollenweider‬ - ‪Google Scholar‬‬‬‬‬‬‬