Building Bridges in Psychedelic Research: My Path to Unlimited Sciences

By Victor Pablo Acero, PhD – Interim Director of Research

My arrival to the Psychedelic Field.

From a young age, I was captivated by the hidden logic that links seemingly unrelated ideas. This fascination is the throughline that has guided everything I’ve done. I have always seen myself as a bridge builder: someone who links disciplines, people, and organizations to create something greater than the sum of its parts.

Before arriving at my Bioengineering doctoral program at the University of Pennsylvania, I explored protein engineering, aerospace engineering, biosensor development, and nanoelectromechanical systems. But it was by chance that I encountered research on psychedelics, and it reshaped my trajectory completely. I became deeply interested in the brain across scales, eventually transferring from a Materials Science to a Bioengineering PhD program, where I helped develop 3D neuro-tissue engineered devices for pharmacological research (our forthcoming results show how these devices respond to low-dose ketamine).

Soon after joining the program, I co-founded the Penn Society for Psychedelic Science student group and co-organized the Intercollegiate Psychedelics Summit 2019, where through conversation with chemists, anthropologists, pharmacologists, ethicists, psychiatrists, shamans, philosophers, and artists, I came to see psychedelics as a unique convergence point for diverse disciplines… exactly the transdisciplinary milieu I had always sought.

Furthermore, this experience helped me concretely tap into my passion for community building, which I channeled into the creation of the  Intercollegiate Psychedelics Network: a global non-profit connecting, developing, and empowering the next generation of leaders in the eco-system. Later, I helped co-found the Penn Psychedelics Collaborative (PPC) and served as Associate Director. At Penn, psychedelic research was often fragmented across silos, driven by competition rather than collaboration. The PPC sought to change that: building a transdisciplinary hub that linked faculty and trainees across schools. We launched the PPC in 2023 with the PhilaDelic Conference, a transdisciplinary conference that brought together 50 speakers across 12 disciplines to explore diverse perspectives on how psychedelics facilitated healing across varied contexts.

That event reaffirmed a belief I hold deeply: innovation flourishes when diverse minds share a common table.

My latest shift has brought me from in vitro to humans: from tissue models to human experience. As a Postdoctoral Scholar at the Center for Psychedelic Drug Research and Education (CPDRE) at The Ohio State University, I’ve been bridging neuroscience, psychopharmacology, and psychology across our various studies, such as our Global Ibogaine Patient Survey. This work has now led me to my newest chapter: joining Unlimited Sciences as the Interim Director of Research.

My Scientific Ethos and Future in Unlimited Sciences.

As a scientist, I am energized by venturing into the uncharted, questioning long-held assumptions, and forging new frameworks for understanding. More than just advancing knowledge, I am captivated by collaborative inquiry and problem-solving at disciplinary boundaries, where intuition, creativity, and rigorous inquiry converge. A transdisciplinary approach to psychedelic research excited me – one where we weave together knowledge across the sciences and humanities, that challenges scientific dogma and demands new ways of thinking. The work also carries profound sociopolitical implications: the evidence we generate can shape policy, medicine, and the broader cultural understanding of healing and human potential.

As the Interim Director of Research, I believe I advance impactful research by centering on a transdisciplinary and collaborative ethos centered on building bridges across disciplines, institutions, and ways of knowing. I am committed to naturalistic, observational, and case research that can provide meaningful insights for policymakers, clinicians, and the public.

As of now, there are a couple of directions I am interested in exploring:

• Psychedelics for traumatic brain injury (TBI) recovery
• The impact of psychedelics on family systems and relational healing
• Community-based research with marginalized populations, ensuring their voices shape the questions we ask and the knowledge we produce

Ultimately, what excites me most about joining Unlimited Sciences is the opportunity to help shape research that’s both scientifically and socially meaningful: research that honors real-world experiences and informs responsible, equitable integration of these medicines into society. I’m also deeply excited to help cultivate a vibrant community of research volunteers and collaborators: essentially helping build an Unlimited Sciences research lab.

We would love to hear from you. If you’re interested in collaborating or have ideas for research questions that could move the field forward, please reach out. Let’s build something extraordinary together.