STUDY TEAM
PHILIP–COWEN
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
My research focuses on the psychopharmacology of depression, and I have more than 30 years of experience in the conduction of experimental medicine studies.
I am interested in the biochemical changes that are associated with depression and how drugs work to alleviate the symptoms that depressed patients’ experience.
RICCARDO DE GIORGI
LEAD RESEARCHER
I am a Wellcome Trust Doctoral Training Fellow (DPhil in Biomedical and Clinical Sciences) at the University of Oxford, and a honorary Clinical Fellow (MRCPsych) at the Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust. While leading the OxSTEP team, I am responsible for assessing participants during screening and providing medical review throughout the study.
ALICE–QUINTON
RESEARCHER
I am a research assistant for the Clinical Psychopharmacology group, with an MSc in Clinical and Therapeutic Neuroscience and a broad interest in mental health research. I am responsible for recruitment of OxSTEP study and ensuring that volunteer experience during the study runs smoothly.

CATHERINE HARMER
CO SUPERVISOR
I am the director of the Psychopharmacology and Emotional Research Lab (PERL) based at the University Department of Psychiatry in Oxford. The research of the group focuses on the psychological mechanisms of antidepressant drug action by exploring drug effects on human models of emotional processing.
SUSANNAH MURPHY
CO SUPERVISOR
I am a NIHR Oxford Health BRC Senior Fellow in the Psychopharmacology and Emotional Research Lab (PERL) with a cross-disciplinary research profile combining expertise in psychology, neuroimaging, psychopharmacology, and neuroscience. My research uses a translational experimental medicine approach to provide an early assessment of novel treatment approaches in humans.
AMY–GILLESPIE
RESEARCHER
I am working as a postdoctoral researcher with the Psychopharmacology and Emotion Research Lab (PERL), with a PhD in Psychosis Studies from King’s College London. I’m interested in a range of mental health conditions, understanding the mechanisms of treatment, and improving prediction of treatment outcomes.