Psychedelic Business Spotlight: June 18, 2021

This week in psychedelic business news: Patent progress for biosynthetic psilocybin, psychedelics for brain health, and psychedelic and cannabis companies team up in the name of research. 

Core One Labs Inc.’s subsidiary Vocan Biotechnologies Inc., is in the final stages of completing its provisional patent application to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for its proprietary biosynthetic psilocybin production system. The process is designed to address the inefficiencies and cost prohibitions of current natural and synthetic psilocybin production methods. 

Vocan Biotechnology, which operates under one of few Health Canada Controlled Drugs and Substances Dealer’s labs, is collaborating with the University of British Columbia in the production of its biosynthetic psilocybin.

“This could position the Company as the leader in provision of pharmaceutical API grade psilocybin which could ultimately drive value for shareholders and stakeholders alike,” said Core One Labs CEO Joel Shacker. “We have assembled a world class team to promote and sell our biosynthesized psilocybin to other major companies that are working on therapeutic psychedelic solutions. With current prices of psilocybin being over $7,000 per gram, we view this space as being highly profitable.”

Canada’s top research hospital, University Health Network (UHN), has granted Lucid Psycheceutials Inc., a psychedelic company focused on brain health, exclusive rights to novel compounds for therapeutic applications in neurogenerative disorders. Lucid will develop small molecule therapeutics for the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders such as multiple sclerosis, where demyelination and neurodegeneration are key aspects of disease progression. 

UHN encompasses the Toronto General and Toronto Western hospitals, the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, and The Michener Institute of Education at UHN. 

“This license agreement is a significant step in expanding a pipeline of molecules targeting some of the most challenging brain disorders, potentially helping millions of patients suffering from mental health challenges and neurodegenerative disorders in the future,” said Lucid co-founder and CEO, Dr. Lakshmi Kotra, a Professor of Medicinal Chemistry at University of Toronto, and senior scientist at Krembil Brain Institute at UHN. “It was a delight working with the UHN​’s Technology Development and Commercialization team, which shares our commitment to creating a healthier world.”

Psilocybin and medical mushroom producer Wake Network Inc., is partnering with Santé Cannabis, a pioneer of medical cannabis research, on clinical research initiatives in Canada. The engagement will enable Wake to capitalize on Santé’s clinical experience as it navigates the complex regulatory changes with naturally derived controlled substances. 

“Santé is a key partner to for Wake as they are a leading contract research organization in Canada with expertise in advancing plant-based pharmaceutical products through various phases of clinical trial development,” said Wake CEO Nick Murray. “This relationship enables us to initiate our clinical research program and marks an important step for Wake in Canada. Working with such an experienced partner in the field of complementary medicines, we can offer a unique opportunity for physicians to learn about our clinical research program and to broaden their knowledge base on all aspects relating to the benefits of psychedelics.”

CTT Pharma Inc., announced that its Canadian patent covering orally administrable wafers applies to all forms of psychedelic applications, including psilocybin, DMT, MDMA, LSD and ketamine, among others. The company’s sublingual strips provide increased bioavailability of the active ingredient, rapid onset of action, and accurate micro-dosing. 

“We have made considerable progress towards advancing the development of CTT in the past months,” said CTT CEO Cam Birge. “Our new commercial and business development appointments have delivered a number of very interesting opportunities that we are now currently pursuing and we expect to be able to make further announcements within the coming months. We also continue to expand our market reach, pursuing applications in natural health and psychedelics, both of which are areas exceptionally suited for the characteristics and advantages of our technology.”

Mushroom product developer Optimi Health Corp. and mental health care company Numinus Wellness Inc., have received approval from Health Canada to proceed with a formal submission to initiate the companies’ previously proposed phase 1 study. 

Administrators of the IMPACT Clinical Trails Accelerator at the University of Calgary engaged with Health Canada earlier this month to discuss Optimi’s preliminary information package, which included, among other items, procedures and processes to produce a consistent dosage from psilocybin mushrooms. 

“We have been given the green light to submit the formal application for the proposed phase I dosing study from Health Canada and are on track to initiate the trial in Q3 of this year,” said Michelle Nelson, PhD, CAPM, Senior Manager, Business Development and Strategic Planning for the IMPACT program. “Health Canada indicated they have no concerns over the plan as presented, and they’ve clarified that the next step is now to submit the formal application to receive approval to move ahead with a phase I study.”

Red Light Holland and Creso Pharma are merging to create The HighBrid Lab, a new entity that will focus on expanding the company’s market and brand leadership in recreational psilocybin as well as scaling recreational cannabis offerings in North America. 

The HighBrid Lab will have an implied pro formal equity value of $371 million based on the closing price of the shares of Creso Pharma and Red Light Holland on June 15, 2021, and is expected to have a cash balance of $48 million. The transaction results in a reverse takeover of Red Light Holland by Creso Pharma. The HighBrid Lab will trade on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the symbol TRIP.

Pervasip Corp. has purchased a 5 percent non-dilutive interest in Kaiyon Biotech Inc., a collaboration of doctors, scientists, researchers, and chemists working to create new medicines to treat depression, pain, and drug addiction using psilocybin and CBD compounds. The acquisition requires the Company to issue 50 million restricted shares of common stock.

Pervasip intends to leverage doctors and trained professionals in South Korea through its ownership in Kaiyon and bring the experience and training back to the United States.