Heffter Research Institute Update

Dr. David Nichols
Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy
Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN 47907
email: drdave@sage.cc.purdue.edu

The Heffter Research Institute continues to develop a presence among the community of those interested in seeing research with psychedelic substances brought into the era of modern biomedical technology. Informal discussions with a number of people have reinforced our belief that a group of mainstream scientists who backed such an enterprise would be taken seriously, and would instill confidence that we could accomplish our stated goals. This is the guiding principle of the Heffter Institute.

Following our incorporation in 1993 and granting of 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status by the IRS, the board members have primarily underwritten the tangible start up costs, while numerous volunteers have provided hard work to help us get to our present position. One volunteer (and donor to the Institute) is providing continuous free access to his personal workstation and high speed communications line as a site for our home page on the world wide web ( http://www.heffter.org/). The home page was designed by yet another volunteer. Several volunteers have worked on developing a database and mailing list for grassroots fundraising, others have provided professional services in graphics design and writing, and still others have hosted our board meetings. We were also given several hours of free consultation by a professional fund-raiser. The list goes on....

I would be remiss if I did not also acknowledge the tremendous assistance provided by Rick Doblin and MAPS, not only for providing access to the newsletter, and for "stuffing" the brochure announcing our "birth" in an earlier MAPS mailing, but also for continuous encouragement. In addition, the Albert Hofmann Foundation has been most supportive of Heffter's efforts, and their president, Michael Gilbert, has been congenial and open with his good advice for us. It is clear that these volunteer efforts only scratch the surface of a huge reservoir of talent that strongly believes in our mission to study the nature of the mind, and that this study is essential for the future well-being of our society and our species.

Worthy Projects

In the immediate future, the Heffter Research Institute already has plans in place to fund a variety of research studies. We have helped to underwrite a project, along with MAPS and the Hofmann Foundation, that would begin to develop an on-line database of all the literature ever published on psychedelic drug research (see page xx). We have plans to study the role of peyote in the Native American Church (NAC), by invitation of a branch of the NAC. We strongly support Dr. Charles Grob's study of the use of MDMA in terminal patients, as well as Dr. Rick Strassman's proposed study of psilocybin in terminal patients. We are studying the feasibility of sponsoring an international conference on psychoactive drugs, to be held in 1996 and will also help to underwrite a scientific conference to be sponsored by the Uni‹o do Vegetal (UDV), in Brazil. We would also provide support for studies in Europe that will utilize positron imaging techniques ("PET scans") to study metabolic changes in the brain during the action of psychedelics and other psychoactive drugs. Additional projects would seek to better characterize and measure the neuropsychological, psychophysiological, and cognitive alterations produced by psychedelic drugs and compare and contrast these effects with those associated with other drugs or altered states of consciousness. On a very basic level, we also have a proposal to examine novel molecular structures related to LSD, and to characterize their interactions with brain receptors, with the ultimate goal of elucidating neurotransmitter pathways that are involved in the actions of all psychedelics.

We also plan to establish fellowship training programs to encourage and support the development of the next generation of researchers interested in psychedelics. These and a variety of other scientific projects are all targets for funding in the immediate future. We have also invited a number of researchers to submit proposals to us.

Quest for an endowment

One feature of our mission that makes us a bit different is the fact that we have a long-term goal of raising an endowment sufficient to provide funds for research in perpetuity. What this means is that in the year 2020, 2045, or whenever (Terence McKenna's dire predictions not withstanding), there will be a Heffter Research Institute, carrying out research on the mind/brain interface (something not likely to be well defined for at least a few millennia.) The realization of this goal will require that we eventually raise several tens of millions of dollars. This is a huge sum, and it will be a daunting task to raise this much money.

Some people have questioned the wisdom of this approach, asking, "Why should the Heffter Institute do this?" I would like to take this opportunity to explain why we think this an absolutely critical goal. First of all, to provide a background, MAPS members cannot doubt the hard work and heroic effort required of Rick Doblin to raise funds for the various projects that MAPS supports. Indeed, MAPS is a great tribute to the personal dedication of Rick Doblin. But MAPS is also structured to spend all the donations it receives. This has been necessary in order quickly to develop a constituency and base of support for critical and immediate needs. MAPS has served as a focal point for a great many issues and has helped to raise awareness on the kinds of things that presently can and cannot be done with respect to drug policy and medical research in this country and the world.

On the other hand, one cannot have a long term presence in research of any kind without a plan to develop a funding base that allows more time to be spent on research, and less time on fundraising. While even large institutes still have fund-raising operations, a sizable and stable endowment allows the institute scientists freedom to pursue inquiry in times of general economic hardship, and to address areas of inquiry that may be controversial, and not fundable from mainstream sources. Endowments rarely provide sufficient funds to fully underwrite an institute's research; in-house scientists still must obtain additional funding; but the endowment gives an economic foundation upon which those other efforts can be based.

Cuts in government funding

That research funding is becoming an issue of great concern should be evident from the current political climate. Several of the founders, as well as many of the members of the scientific advisory board of the Heffter Institute currently have academic research programs that are supported by government agencies such as the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). As you are all aware, there is a proposal in congress to freeze the funding level for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the next five years. The present annual NIH appropriation of about $11 billion essentially supports all government-sponsored biomedical research on cancer, AIDS, mental health, schizophrenia, heart disease, diabetes, you name it. (As a point of reference, some sources have estimated that the total costs of the "war on drugs" are at least $30 billion per year.)

NIH is the umbrella agency over NIDA, NIMH, and all other government-funded biomedical research programs. It is quite difficult to obtain funds for research from any of these agencies, and a process of natural selection has already eliminated most scientists from the applicant pool that have not had past success in getting grants funded. The competition to get research funded is extremely tough right now. At NIMH, only about 7 out of every 100 new proposals submitted to that agency were funded last year. Those "100" proposals were written mostly by seasoned investigators, who have finely honed their grant writing skills, and who have "track records" of creativity and high productivity.

A freeze on the level of funding for NIH would mean that as inflation (which is higher for biomedical research than for the cost of living) increases research costs, there will be an actual decrease in available funds. In fact, many grants that have already been funded are now being cut dramatically, in some cases by 30-40%. How many research scientists will even submit grants to agencies like NIMH when the success rate drops even further, to 2 or 3 grants funded per 100 submitted? It becomes a whole lot like playing a lottery!

For research topics related to how psychedelics affect the brain, or what brain mechanisms psychedelics catalyze to reveal unique aspects of the mind, how much "mainstream" funding can we expect in the future? To use a well-worn cliche, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that this kind of research will not be a high priority for funding. One could safely predict that funds for this type of work will dry up even more than in the past. There is absolutely no prospect in sight that this trend will be reversed any time in the near future.

Creating a legacy

We believe that the imperative for the Heffter Research Institute, to develop a substantial endowment, is the only way that those of us who are interested in this research can ensure that it continues now, and in the future. This would be a legacy that we could leave behind, knowing that we put into place a mechanism for the study of the human mind that would continue for as long as this society exists.

At present, the Heffter Institute is poised to begin our first major fund-raising campaign. We hope to convince donors that we represent a worthy cause, and that we must take action now to develop a research presence. We believe that as time goes on it will become more and more difficult to initiate an enterprise such as the Heffter Institute. Many individuals who grew up in the sixties now have successful careers and are beginning to look at ways to give something back to society. A great many of these folks know that research on psychedelic drugs and the mind is a worthwhile endeavor, and support us. Their knowledge is power, and they represent a resource that cannot be recovered if we let this opportunity to build a research institute pass us by.

Younger generations have grown up in a different era. They are being taught that psychedelic drugs are part of the drug "problem," and are no different than narcotic opiates, or cocaine.... they are just "dangerous drugs." Even now, medical and pharmacy schools generally fail to provide accurate information about psychedelics to their students. Few professors today teach about, or even know the long and rich history of psychedelic substances, the roles they played in healing, or their use in the religious and cultural practices of a great many societies.

Just as we are witnessing the loss of shamanic knowledge, and the loss of uncountable plant and animal species from wilderness areas devastated by the encroachment of civilization, our knowledge of psychedelic substances is being lost yet again. The pioneers came, did their early work, and now have retired. Yet vital tasks of understanding who we are, how the mind works, and finding our place in the universe remain, important questions that research with psychedelics may help to answer. Who shall fill this void? Should we just forget it altogether? We think not. And we believe that the Heffter Institute is the answer to this need.

Now is the time

We know that the financial resources exist to accomplish our mission. There are many extremely successful individuals that privately will tell you they believe in the importance of psychedelic drug research. We must convince these people that the Heffter Institute is finally the means to accomplish this important work. In our first brochure, we paraphrased something first said by Victor Hugo, "There is no force in the universe more powerful than an idea whose time has come." We must follow this with, "Let us believe together that now is the time."

If you believe that the Heffter Institute is the means to create your own legacy, and wish to contribute to what we plan as a gift to all humankind, send your own tax-deductible donation to:

The Heffter Research Institute
330 Garfield Street
Suite 301
Santa Fe, NM 87501-2676
USA