Declan M McLoughlin PhD MRCPI MRCPsych FTCD is Research Professor of Psychiatry in St Patrick’s University Hospital and Trinity College Dublin, Ireland. He qualified from University College Dublin in 1986 and trained in general medicine and psychiatry in both Dublin and London. Recent research activities include randomised controlled trials of ECT and ketamine in severe depression, systematic reviews and meta-analyses, molecular biomarkers (e.g. mRNA, miRNA, telomere length) for depression, plus projects on molecular mechanisms of action of ECT. His work has been supported by the Alzheimer’s Society, Wellcome Trust, NHS Health Technology Assessment Programme, NARSAD, and the Health Research Board.