Dr Riccardo De Giorgi, MD, DPhil, MRCPsych, is a Clinical Lecturer in Psychiatry at the University of Oxford and an Honorary Consultant in General Adult Psychiatry at Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust. He teaches psychiatry and psychopharmacology, leads experimental medicine research, and focuses on repurposing immuno-metabolic drugs — including GLP-1 receptor agonists — for cognitive and mental disorders.

In this episode, we explore GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) — medications originally developed for diabetes and obesity — and their emerging relevance to psychiatry and brain health. Recent analyses, including work led by Dr De Giorgi, review preclinical and clinical evidence suggesting these drugs may influence cognitive processes, reward pathways, mood regulation, and inflammatory mechanisms implicated in conditions such as depression, addiction, Alzheimer’s disease, and other psychiatric or neurocognitive disorders.

We discuss:

• How GLP-1 signalling works in the body and the brain
• Why psychiatrists are increasingly interested in GLP-1RAs beyond metabolic effects
• The current evidence for psychiatric and cognitive benefits (and limitations)
• Mechanistic challenges in translating animal findings to humans
• The importance of stratifying patients and integrating biomarkers in future research

This episode strips away hype to uncover what science currently supports — and what remains an open question — about the psychiatric potential of GLP-1 receptor agonists.