Dea Stenbæk

Dea S. Stenbæk is a clinical neuroscientist and head of the Copenhagen University Clinic for Psychedelic Research affiliated with the Neurobiology Research Unit. Her work combines PET and MRI neuroimaging with controlled psilocybin administration in healthy volunteers to characterise molecular and systems-level correlates of psychedelic experience. She has contributed to several influential studies demonstrating that neocortical 5‑HT2A receptor binding and receptor occupancy predict subjective effects of psilocybin, and that modulation by 5‑HT2A antagonism (ketanserin) alters cerebral blood flow responses.

Stenbæk's research group has published on both acute and lasting effects of single psilocybin doses, including associations between mystical-type experiences and subsequent increases in trait mindfulness, and persistent changes in resting-state functional connectivity. Her portfolio spans receptor PET, arterial spin labelling and BOLD fMRI, pharmacokinetic–pharmacodynamic analyses (psilocin/plasma levels and receptor occupancy), and methodological and ethical considerations in modern psychedelic clinical research. She has collaborated with international teams and contributes to translational efforts linking neurobiology to therapeutic mechanisms and subjective outcome measures.