The Week in Psychedelics
- New Psychedelics ETF Launches On NYSE Arca
- Psilocybin Clinical Trial Approved For Patients Using Antidepressants in Canada
- Entheon Launches Phase 1 Study On Ayahuasca's Active Ingredient DMT
- Psychedelic Beer: The Leadership Elixir Of The Ancient Peruvian Andes
- Utah House Committee Approves Psychedelics Research For Mental Health Conditions And Protecting MMJ Patients In Workplace
- Seattle Physician Launches Push To Reschedule Psilocybin For Medical Use
- Novamind To Host Clinical Trial To Advance Ketamine Therapy For End-of-Life Patients
- Numinus Wellness Appoints New Bioscience Advisors To Bolster IP Development
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Psychedelic Joe Rogan Is Back!
This week saw new triumphs for public companies in the psychedelics space with the creation of a new ETF tracking the sector, which went public in the NYSE.
Filament Health Corp (OTC:FLHLF) and Entheon Biomedical (OTC:ENTBF) announced new milestones in their drug development pipelines for psilocybin and DMT, respectively.
Legislation around psychedelics also took steady steps forward. New initiatives were presented Utah, Michigan and Colorado, which could help expand psychedelics decriminalization across the country.
New Psychedelics ETF Launches On NYSE Arca
Elemental Advisors Inc. has launched its first ETF comprised of companies involved in research, development, production or use of psychedelics to address medical conditions.
The PSYK ETF (NYSE:PSYK) tracks the Enhanced Consciousness Index.
With a small start, the ETF now holds $212,865 in net assets, including shares on psychedelics companies and others in biotech. Of the fund’s top ten holdings by percentage of net asset values, only four are pure-play psychedelics companies: Compass (NASDAQ:CMPS), MindMed (NASDAQ:MNMD), Atai Life Sciences and GH Research (NASDAQ:GHRS).
Psilocybin Clinical Trial Approved For Patients Using Antidepressants in Canada
Health Canada has allowed a phase 2 clinical trial of psilocybin in patients currently undergoing treatment with traditional antidepressants.
What Happened: A phase 2 trial on psilocybin, the active compound in “magic mushrooms,” will be led by Cybin Therapeutics, a privately-held psychedelics company (NYSE:CYBN).
Cybin Therapeutics has licensed PEX010, a botanical psilocybin drug candidate, from drug developer Filament Health Corp. (OTC:FLHLF).
Entheon Launches Phase 1 Study On Ayahuasca's Active Ingredient DMT
Psychedelics biotech startup Entheon Biomedical (OTC:ENTBF) announced the approval by the local Dutch ethics committee for a Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating the pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and safety profile of the psychedelic compound DMT.
DMT is known as the active ingredient in ayahuasca, a ceremonial hallucinogenic concoction traditionally used by indigenous communities in some parts of South America.
"Approval of this study is a significant achievement for the company, marking the culmination of months of rigorous work," said Timothy Ko, CEO of Entheon.
Psychedelic Beer: The Leadership Elixir Of The Ancient Peruvian Andes
New archeological research suggests that a political punch of beer infused with hallucinogens may have helped rulers of the pre-Incan empire maintain power for 400 years.
Between 600 AD and 1000 AD, the Wari Empire spanned across the verdant highlands of modern-day Peru. For over 400 years, they prospered, forging political allegiances and existing as the preeminent empire of the Andes. The secret to their success? Psychedelic beer.
Recent research in the Antiquity journal suggests that beer laced with a hallucinogenic extracted from plant seeds may have “reinforced the power of the Wari state, and represents an intermediate step between exclusionary and corporate political strategies.”
Utah House Committee Approves Psychedelics Research For Mental Health Conditions And Protecting MMJ Patients In Workplace
A Utah House committee voted on Thursday to set up a Mental Illness Psychotherapy Drug Task Force to research and offer recommendations on the therapeutic value of psychedelics, reported Marijuana Moment. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Brady Brammer, was approved by the House Health and Human Services Committee in a 10-1 vote.
Under the legislation, the new task force would study and make recommendations on controlled substances “not currently available for legal use” and that “may be able to treat, manage, or alleviate symptoms from mental illness.”
Seattle Physician Launches Push To Reschedule Psilocybin For Medical Use
The DEA recently increased its quota for psilocybin for 2022, as well as for the legal production of psychedelic drugs such as MDMA and DMT, in response to heightened demand and interest within the scientific community to research the effectiveness of these psychedelic drugs in the treatment of mental health disorders.
Now, a petition filed earlier this week by Seattle physician Sunil Aggarwal who specializes in end-of-life care, is urging the agency to reschedule psilocybin as a less-restricted Schedule II drug, Marijuana Moment reported.
Novamind To Host Clinical Trial To Advance Ketamine Therapy For End-of-Life Patients
Novamind Inc. (OTC:NVMDF), the mental health company specializing in psychedelic medicine, has been selected by the Ketamine Research Foundation to host a phase II clinical trial investigating ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (KAP) for adults with life-threatening illness.
The FDA approval of the study's KAP protocol marks a first in the investigation of KAP for end-of-life patients and its potential to serve as a model of care for this difficult-to-treat population, the company said Thursday. The Conscious Dying/Conscious Living Trial is sponsored by the KRF, a non-profit leader in ketamine research, advocacy and clinical training.
Numinus Wellness Appoints New Bioscience Advisors To Bolster IP Development
Psychedelics-focused Numinus Wellness Inc. NUMI (OTC:NUMIF) appointed three key advisors to its new Bioscience Advisory Board.
The Vancouver-based company chose Graham Pechenik, a registered patent attorney and founder of Calyx Law, an industry-leading law firm specialized in IP relating to cannabis and psychedelics.
Pechenik also contributes to Psilocybin Alpha as editor-at-large, writing about psychedelics IP and contributing to psychedelics patent, legalization, and decriminalization trackers. He is a member of Chacruna's Council for the Protection of Sacred Plants.
Psychedelic Joe Rogan Is Back!
After Joe Rogan made headlines and faced backlash from Spotify (NYSE:SPOT) and scientists for calling into question the validity of the COVID-19 vaccine, it seems the world famous podcaster will now focus on magic mushrooms, the fascinating stories of prehistoric civilizations and its links with primates.
"Let’s get back to talking about things that are really important, like primates and mushrooms" Rogan posted.
