Dr. Bill Deakin

I am Prof of Psychiatry at the University of Manchester. After house jobs at Leeds General
Infirmary, I took up a research post with Tim Crow and Eve Johnstone, now famous for their
discoveries on dopamine and brain changes in psychosis, at Northwick Park hospital. After
my PhD I moved to Manchester as Senior lecturer and then Prof.
My long-term interest is understanding the role of neurotransmitters such as glutamate and
serotonin in the pathogenesis of common mental illnesses schizophrenia and in finding
better treatments for them. My early neurochemical studies in human post mortem brain
found evidence of glutamate dysfunction in frontal and temporal lobe regions. I use
experimental medicine methods in healthy volunteers to detect CNS engagement of novel
drugs early in development. Our findings led to investment in clinical development of 2
drugs recently and one has shown efficacy in clinical trials already.
Lately I have become interested in the possible interaction between neuroflammation and
glutamate abnormalities in psychosis. I use MRS, fMRI and PET in-vivo studies in patients
and carry out clinical trials of anti-inflammatory drugs such as minocycline and
methotrexate.
I am Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences. I received the 2017 British Association of
Psychopharmacology Lifetime Achievement Award.