Great news from one of our earliest portfolio companies, Psilera, which just announced that it has received initial toxicity readouts from maximum tolerated dose (MTD) in vivo studies showing a strong safety profile. 

Additional preclinical in vivo efficacy studies, conducted through the University of South Florida, have shown PSIL-006's ability to improve the sleep, learning, and memory in humanized Tau mouse models.

PSIL-006 is Psilera’s non-hallucinogenic psilocybin derivative for the treatment of frontotemporal dementia (FTD).

Here’s what Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Jackie von Salm had to say:

 “From the start, our primary focus was to develop a new class of neurological therapies for patients that eliminate unnecessary side-effects which traditionally limited patient access to natural compounds with high therapeutic potential. This initial data reinforces our strong belief that neuroplastogens have tremendous untapped potential."

Bolstered by this preclinical data, Psilera is now poised to advance PSIL-006 towards first-in-human studies for Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD).  FTD, if you’re unfamiliar, refers to a group of disorders caused by progressive nerve cell loss in the brain's frontal or temporal lobes.

The nerve cell damage caused by FTD leads to loss of function in these brain regions, which variably cause deterioration in behavior, personality and/or difficulty with producing or comprehending language. We are extremely excited to see Psilera move forward on this incredibly important research. 

Here’s more: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/psilera-receives-positive-preclinical-vivo-121500975.html

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Optimi Health announced that it has received a No Objection Letter (NOL) from Health Canada, which authorizes the use of the company’s GMP natural psilocybin extract capsules in a Phase 2 clinical trial to study Major Depressive Disorder, conducted in collaboration with ATMA Journey Centers. 

This Phase 2 trial, focused within Canada, is designed to assess the safety, efficacy, and therapeutic potential of Optimi’s psilocybin extract capsules. The results of this study will be crucial in advancing the clinical understanding of natural psilocybin’s role in treating mental health conditions, with the ultimate goal of integrating this therapy into clinical practice through official registration of the drug in Canada.

Check it out: https://www.optimihealth.ca/optimi-health-atma-receive-no-objection-letter-from-health-canada-for-phase-2-clinical-trial/

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that the NIH will put $2.4 million of grant money toward funding studies on the use of psychedelics to treat methamphetamine use disorders.

The money comes as federal health officials note sharp increases in deaths from methamphetamine and other psychostimulants in recent years, with fatal overdoses involving the substances rising by nearly five times between 2015 and 2022.

Recipients of the grant include researchers at the University of California San Diego’s (UCSD) Center for Psychedelic Research, Louisiana State University (LSU) Health Shreveport and the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW).
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To date, there are no effective pharmacological treatments for methamphetamine addiction. Here’s more: https://www.mcw.edu/newsroom/news-articles/nih-awards-2-point-4-m-grant-to-researchers-to-study-psychedelics-for-methamphetamine-addiction

Did you know that music offers multiple benefits in your brain?

Have you ever wondered why listening to your favorite songs can boost your mood? The reason for this is that music lights up your brain's reward parts and releases dopamine and oxytocin. Dopamine release may also help improve your memory because your brain creates a positive connection between a memory (or a piece of information) and the song you are listening to. 

Listening to music can also help lessen the production and release of the stress hormone cortisol, thereby lowering blood pressure and heart rate and improving cognition. And music may also have the power to heal the brain, particularly in people with brain damage, brain injury, or stroke. 

The left side of the brain processes language, and the right side of the brain processes music; consequently, music therapy can help bridge the gap and create new neurological pathways to improve speech and language comprehension.

Here’s more: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5618809/