atai Life Sciences announced positive topline results from Beckley Psytech’s Phase 2a open-label study of BPL-003 in patients with moderate to severe alcohol use disorder (AUD). 

If you’re unfamiliar, BPL-003 is a synthetic intranasal formulation of 5-MeO-DMT benzoate designed to deliver rapid and durable treatment effects from a single dose with a short in-clinic treatment time. 

Results from the study showed that a single dose of BPL-003, in combination with relapse prevention cognitive behavioral therapy, induced meaningful and sustained reduction in alcohol use and heavy drinking days in patients with moderate to severe AUD out to 12 weeks.

BPL-003 was also shown to be well-tolerated with adverse events being reported as mild or moderate and with no serious or severe adverse events reported. Most patients were assessed as ready for discharge within approximately two hours.

Beckley Psytech plans to evaluate future development options for BPL-003 in substance use disorders and anticipates reporting additional clinical data later this year. Here’s more: https://ir.atai.life/news-releases/news-release-details/atai-life-sciences-announces-positive-topline-results-beckley

MindBio announced the results of a mandatory independent safety audit of two of its Phase 2B clinical trials for its lead candidate MB22001. One, which is a triple blind, double dummy, active placebo-controlled trial for patients with major depressive disorder, and the other is for patients with advanced-stage cancer suffering from end-of-life distress, anxiety and depression. 

According to the audit, no serious adverse events or serious side effects were found, and therefore, the trials have been approved for continuation and are expected to be completed by the end of the year. 

MB22001 is a form of LSD that is administered by patients at home in microdoses. The company believes that this non-hallucinogenic use of psychedelic medicines is the most scalable way to productise drugs in the category in direct competition to first line anti-depressant medications. Here’s more: https://feeds.issuerdirect.com/news-release.html?newsid=6503269328153481

As a side note, MindBio also recently announced a major discovery in the effect of psychedelic microdosing on patients’ speech. 

The company discovered it can determine if patients have dosed its medicine by simply analyzing their speech using advanced machine learning algorithms and artificial intelligence techniques. The speech discovery adds to a large repository of intellectual property, in the form of digital and AI related technologies the company has developed as a protective and competitive moat around the dosing and administration of MB22001.

Researchers from the University of Exeter announced a new set of findings that indicate beneficial bacteria are associated with improved memory and attention, while harmful bacteria correlate with mild cognitive impairment.

According to the study, entitled Oral microbiome and nitric oxide biomarkers in older people with mild cognitive impairment and APOE4 genotype, there are two possible links between the mouth and the mind. Pathogenic oral bacteria could enter the bloodstream and move to the brain, or pathogenic oral bacteria could displace nitrate-reducing bacteria, which help create nitric oxide the brain needs for synaptic plasticity and long-term potentiation.

The principal findings of this study were that a greater prevalence of oral P. intermedia (an anaerobic pathogenic bacterium involved in periodontal infections, including gingivitis and periodontitis) is linked to elevated genetic risk for dementia in individuals with mild cognitive impairment prior to dementia diagnosis. Check it out: https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/article/4/1/pgae543/7960038#501891805

Did you know that young adults show the strongest empathic responses to others in physical or social pain, compared to adolescents and older adults?

As reported in a study published in the journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, young adults are especially sensitive to social pain, such as situations of embarrassment, grief and sadness, and empathize more strongly with others experiencing social pain than adolescents or older adults.

Lead author of the study, Professor Heather Ferguson, said that their research provides valuable insights into the complex nature of empathic responses to others in pain. 

Here’s more: https://academic.oup.com/scan/article/19/1/nsae080/7874771