Psychedelic Business Spotlight: August 27, 2021

This week in psychedelic business news, Delic Holdings Corp., formed a Medical Advisory Board comprised of MDs, PhDs, and others specializing in psychedelic wellness and addiction to advise the company and its subsidiaries as they develop safety protocols and best practices in the growing field of legal—and soon to be legal—psychedelic wellness treatments. Delic subsidiaries include Ketamine Infusion Centers and Delic Labs. 

“Science and medicine are the basis of Delic’s approach to psychedelic wellness and our experienced and diverse Medical Advisory Board will help ensure our commitment to safety, quality and efficacy of treatments,” says Delic CEO Matt Stang. “This impressive group represents well-known leaders in the psychedelic and addiction fields and will help usher in a greater understanding of the science and data behind what we expect to be the most effective treatments for many mental health conditions ever available.”

Acquisitions

Los Angeles-based digital company Tripp, whose platform combines virtual and alternative realities with psychedelic imagery through virtual reality, never involved the use of psychedelic drugs. That is, until now. Tripp acquired PsyAssist with the goal of combining Tripp’s VR headset technology, which presents psychedelic visuals, target sounds, and interoperations with PsyAssist’s ketamine-assisted therapy, as well as in MDMA and psilocybin clinical trials. 

Tripp believes that the immersive nature of its VR experience combined with PsyAssist’s research-based protocols will help patients better prepare for and feel less anxious when undergoing psychedelic-assisted therapy. 

“Altered states of consciousness are often disorienting, overwhelming, and challenging to navigate and integrate,” Nanea Reeves, the CEO and founder of TRIPP, says in a statement. “TRIPP is essentially aiding trained experts when patients are not able to properly contextualize and absorb the psychedelic experience so they can get the most out of their treatment.”

FSD Pharma Inc., entered a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of issued and outstanding shares of Lucid Psychedelics Inc., a Canadian specialty psychedelic pharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies to treat critical neurodegenerative diseases, for approximately $9 million in FSD Pharma stock. 

“The acquisition of a distinctive company like Lucid illustrates FSD Pharma’s vision to build a portfolio of biotechnology assets on a new frontier of medicine that hold the potential to treat mental health disorders and neurodegenerative diseases in a new way,” says Anthony Durkacz, Interim CEO of FSD Pharma. “Lucid has successfully developed a strong pipeline of novel therapeutic compounds — supported by IP in order to advance to future clinical trials — and we are confident that the experience the Lucid leadership team brings will allow us to immediately start the process towards clinical trials to further advance these promising therapies. This is an exciting venture for FSD Pharma that we believe represents a paradigm shift in the development and outlook of our company.”

Patents and Delivery Systems

A big component of the psychedelic business going forward will be delivery systems and methods. Silo Pharma Inc., filed three distinct Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications to protect its intellectual property as it advances research and development into the central nervous system delivery of psilocybin and/or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. The PCT applications, along with Silo Pharma’s previously granted IP, expands the potential patient population base for investigating these therapies. 

The PCT is an international treaty with more than 150 Contracting States that enables companies to seek patent protection for an invention simultaneously in many countries by filing a single “international” patent application instead of filing numerous separate national or regional patent applications. 

Ei.Ventures is teaming up with Tioga Research to develop a transdermal patch to provide sustained delivery of psilocybin to treat mental health conditions. “We are over the moon to join with one of the top transdermal delivery research specialists, Tioga Research, to begin developing products that could potentially help millions of people manage their mental health issues – depression, anxiety, PTSD, etc. with a patch,” says EiVentures CEO David Nikzad. 

“Additionally, with the increasing legality and popularity of psilocybin mushrooms, transdermal delivery could become a popular method for micro-dosing which helps with mental clarity and mood stabilization as well,” he adds. 

Supply

Last but not least in psychedelic business news this week, Havn Life Sciences has inked an agreement to supply naturally-derived psilocybin to Mycotopia Therapies to treat mental health disorders. Florida-based Mycotopia Therapies uses psilocybin to treat depression, bipolar disorders, PTSD, ADHD, autism, and addictions using technology-focused, data-driven, and medical-based solutions. The company is also exploring new ways psychedelics can be delivered such as through inhalers, vaporizers, topical methods, tinctures, capsules, and edibles. 

“HAVN Life and Mycotopia Therapies are a natural fit as partners; both companies share a research-based approach to psilocybin and a deep dedication to bettering human health,” says HAVN Life CEO, Tim Moore. “This new partnership advances our efforts to supply safe, quality-controlled psilocybin medicine to researchers and patients around the globe. We’re thrilled our partner Hypha Wellness was able to introduce us to Mycotopia Therapies and facilitate a successful agreement.”