Wenthur Lab
The Wenthur Laboratory takes a highly interdisciplinary approach to the development of new tools and therapeutic approaches for understanding and treating psychiatric illnesses. The lab has a suite of pre-clinical and clinical research projects; these projects employ approaches ranging from chemical synthesis, to in vitro pharmacologic assays, to in vivo behavioral models, to psychometric screening in human subjects. Our projects include development of antibodies directed against synthetic opioids and cannabinoids; mechanistic dissection of rapidly-acting antidepressant activities of ketamine, psilocybin, and other psychedelics; and identification of opportunities and barriers to implementation of novel mental healthcare delivery approaches like addiction vaccines and psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies. Ultimately, we believe that coordinated investigation across multiple levels of inquiry is necessary to support rapid translation of findings and make real progress in improving human mental health.
Active*/Recent Funding
These projects are built upon synthesis and/or vaccination with novel compounds that mimic core features of synthetic psychoactive molecule structures, as a means to enable improved screening for use, mitigate drug craving, and/or block the effects of drug overdose. Current projects in this domain focus on synthetic stimulants, cannabinoids, and opioids.
Targeting Ghrelin/Dopamine Receptor Heterodimers for Stimulant Use Disorder
Efforts in this area are oriented toward deconstruction of the relative impact of complex pharmacologic and psychological responses in the reversal of damaging behaviors by rapidly-acting antidepressant compounds. These projects focus on understanding the actions of ketamine, psilocybin, and other psychedelics, including how these interventions interact with environmental factors.
Deconvoluting Polypharmacologic Contributions of Rapidly-Acting Antidepressants
Recall of Experience and Conscious Awareness in Psilocybin Treatment of Depression (RECAP)
Pro-Neuroplastic Mechanisms Underlying Therapeutic Actions of Psychoactive Agents
This domain centers on engagement with key stakeholders early in the drug development process as a means to measure and incorporate the voices of patients and providers within implementation of conceptually-novel psychiatric treatment approaches and promote equitable and ethical distribution of mental healthcare services. Current projects focus on the use of human surveys and qualitative interviews focused on assessing the logistical and ethical considerations for implementation of ‘addiction vaccine’ and ‘psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy’ approaches.
Psychedelic Outcomes: Interaction of Environment, Self-Identity, and Success (POIESIS)
Expansion of Naloxone Dispensing Under Pharmacist Scope of Practice
Cody starts as an undergrad at Purdue
(13 years before the Wenthur Lab is founded)
First funded research experience: Purdue SURF Fellowship (Davisson Lab)
Admitted to PharmD program
(11 years before the Wenthur Lab is founded)
Cody’s first paper: ‘SERT structure/function relationships’
Biochemical Pharmacology (Barker Lab)
Merck Award: Cody is awarded his first research award
Earned PharmD; Started PhD at Vanderbilt
(7 years before the Wenthur Lab is founded)
First federal funding: NIGMS T32 Appointment (Lindsley Lab)
NIDA L30 Awarded
Cody’s tenth paper: ‘Glutamatergic mechanisms on learning and mPFC plasticity’
PNAS (Lindsley / Conn Labs)
Earned PhD; Started Postdoc at The Scripps Research Institute
(3 years before the Wenthur Lab is founded)
NIDA F32 Awarded
Cody publishes first Nature paper (Janda Lab)
‘DISSECTIV approach to psychoactive polypharmacology’
Jared F. Purton Memorial Award
WENTHUR LAB FOUNDED
UW–Madison School of Pharmacy
Zhen Zheng joins the lab (First Postdoc)
Adam Worob joins the lab (First Graduate Student)
Jillian Kyzer joins the lab (Second Postdoc)
RECAP Pilot Funding Donated (Mike & Mary Shannon)
Role – Co-investigator (PI: Raison, UW–Madison)
AR WiTAG Funding Awarded
Role – Collaborator (PI: O’ Reilly, UWRF)
Cody publishes first manuscript as independent investigator
JPSW ‘Pharmacists and Opioid Epidemic’
Nate Jones joins the lab (Second Graduate Student)
MCP Program; T32 funding
Adam Worob publishes first Wenthur Lab literature review
ACS Chemical Neuroscience ‘Dark Classics – Synthetic Cannabinoids’
Jan 2020 – Zarmeen Zahid joins the lab (Third Graduate Student)
Joint mentoring with Banks Lab; NTP Program; T32 funding
NIMH R01 Grant Awarded (Rapidly-Acting Antidepressant Mechanisms)
Role – Primary Investigator (First Wenthur Lab R01)
Jillian Kyzer publishes first Wenthur Lab research paper (Cody’s 25th)
ACS Pharmacol. & Transl. Sci. ‘Opioid Antibody Biomarker Detection’
John Razidlo joins the lab (Fourth Graduate Student)
NTP program; T32 funding
First Faculty Alumnus: Zhen Zheng takes faculty position at Tianjin University
First-to-market psychedelic MS program: MS in Psychoactive Pharmaceutical Investigation Program Approved. Cody named as Founding Director.
WARF URI Grant Funded (Psychedelic Environment and Identity)
Role – Primary Investigator
Vincent Wartenweiler Publishes Opioid Vaccine Ethics paper in BMC Medical Ethics
Publication of “Catalysts for Change: the cellular neurobiology of psychedelics” in Molecular and Cellular Biology
Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain joins the lab
(Third Postdoc)
Publication of manuscript describing selective 6-hydroxynorketamine antibody development in ACS Chemical Neuroscience
U. Matthew Enriquez joins the lab
(Fifth Graduate Student)
Publication in the Journal of Neuroscience describing GHSR1a:1b:D1 heteromer complex formation in the VTA with collaborators at NIDA, Marquette, and Univ. Barcelona
Publication in Military Medicine evaluating opioid prescribing patterns following surgery at the VA with VA collaborators
Publication of anti-neurotensin antibody and PCP response in Pharmaceutics (Collab: Shusta Lab)
Publication of cross-reactive antibodies against synthetic cannabinoids in Vaccines (Worob).
Adam Worob successfully defends his PhD thesis for Pharmaceutical Sciences!
Noelle Cataldo joins the lab (Mol Cell Pharmacol PhD)
Natalie Gonzalez Velazquez joins the lab (Pharm Sci PhD)
Suhjung Janet Lee joins the lab (Neurosci and Pub Policy PhD)
