Most psilocybin research has focused on young and middle-aged adults. But what about people in their 60s, 70s and 80s — the very people most at risk from cognitive decline? A new study at UC Berkeley,
announced in June 2026, is trying to answer that question — and it’s the first of its kind in the world.
What Is the PLASTICITY Study?
The trial goes by the acronym PLASTICITY — Psychedelic Longitudinal Aging Study In Cognitively Healthy Older Adults. It’s being run by the UC Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics, and it’s the first ever psychedelic neuroimaging study built entirely around older adults.The trial is recruiting healthy volunteers aged 60 to 85. Each person will receive a dose of synthetic psilocybin — somewhere between 1mg and 30mg — and be assessed before the experience, one week after, and one month after. The goal is to understand what psilocybin actually does to the brains of older people, and whether those changes are beneficial.
Why Have Older Adults Been Left Out Until Now?
It’s a fair question. Despite growing interest in psychedelic medicine, elderly people have been almost invisible in clinical research. A review published in 2024 found that over-60s made up just 1.4% of all participants across modern psychedelic studies. For a demographic that has the most to lose from cognitive decline, that’s a striking gap.“Older adults have been almost entirely excluded from modern psychedelics research, yet they may stand to benefit significantly from compounds that promote brain plasticity,” said Professor Michael Silver, faculty director of the Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics.
What Are Researchers Looking For?
The study isn’t just measuring one thing — it’s casting a wide net. Researchers will use a combination of tools to track changes in participants’ brains and mental states:
- Diffusion MRI to examine the physical structure of the hippocampus — the part of the brain responsible for memory and learning
- Functional MRI to observe brain activity during memory tasks
- EEG scans to track brain activity in real time during the experience
- Cognitive and emotional assessments
- Vagus nerve activity — a marker tied to stress recovery and emotional wellbeing
- Surveys measuring wellbeing, social connection and experiences of awe
That last point is more important than it might sound. Feelings of awe and social connection are consistently linked to positive ageing outcomes — and psychedelics are known to reliably produce them.
What Does the Science Already Say?
Animal research has already shown that psilocybin can increase the number of synaptic connections in the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex — two regions that tend to deteriorate most with age. Whether this effect carries over into the human brain is precisely what the Berkeley team wants to find out.On top of that, previous studies in younger adults have linked psilocybin to reductions in depression, anxiety, stress and overthinking. These same mental states — when chronic — have been associated with faster cognitive ageing. So there’s a plausible case that by tackling those states, psilocybin could slow the clock on brain ageing too.“There’s a lot of overlap between the mental states that psychedelics influence and those associated with successful ageing,” said Tyler Toueg, the UC Berkeley doctoral student in neuroscience who co-led the study’s design.
Who Is Behind It?
The team spans several disciplines. Alongside Professor Silver and Tyler Toueg, the project involves Professor William Jagust — a leading expert on brain ageing and Alzheimer’s disease — as well as Professor Dacher Keltner, who studies awe, emotion and wellbeing, and Dr Brian Anderson, a psychiatrist from UCSF serving as the trial’s medical director.“One of the wonderful aspects of doing a study like this at UC Berkeley is that we are able to work with a broad array of experts to simultaneously study many facets of the enduring effects of the psychedelic experience,” said Professor Silver.
Why Does This Matter?
Dementia and cognitive decline are among the biggest health challenges facing ageing populations globally. Current treatments are limited. If psilocybin can meaningfully support brain health in older adults — even as a preventative measure rather than a cure — that would represent a major shift in how we approach ageing.This study won’t have all the answers on its own. But it’s asking exactly the right questions, and it’s doing so with scientific rigour. The results, expected in the coming years, will lay the groundwork for larger trials and potentially bring psilocybin research into an entirely new demographic.
Source: UC Berkeley News, June 2026. Thanks for reading.
