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Psychedelics to transform MDD, PTSD, SAD & Addiction Market Space
As per the Lancet Commission report, the estimated economic impact of mental health disorders will be USD 16 Trillion (direct cost of treatment + lost opportunity costs to society) by 2030, the figures reported prior to Covid onset, which will only exacerbate going forward.
In this context, several biotech companies are actively developing psychoactive substances including long-acting and short-acting compounds in various stages of preclinical and clinical development for indications like Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Substance Abuse Disorder (SAD), Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Post-Partum Depression, Addiction, Smoking Cessation and others.
Some of the key Neuropharmaceutical Psychedelic Companies
The treatment regimen involving Psychedelics is known as Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy (PAP) which incorporates the use of a potent psychoactive substance. The degree of engagement with the therapist depends on the drug and the targeted indication. For example, a thorough engagement would be required with MDMA for the treatment of PTSD and a comparatively lesser engagement with psilocybin for the treatment of Depression
Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAP) involves the ingestion of a psychedelic substance as part of a psychotherapeutic process—that is, the professionally supervised use of ketamine, MDMA, psilocybin, LSD, and ibogaine as part of talk therapy.
| Company | Therapy (Highest stage of development) | MoA | Indications |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compass Pathway | COMP360 (psilocybin) | 5-HT2AR agonist | Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD), Bipolar type 2 depression, Anonerxia nervosa, Body dysmorphic disorder, Chronic cluster headaches, Opoid user disorder, Alcohol use disorder, PTSD, Smoking cessation, cancer related psychological distress |
| Atai Life Sciences | PCN-101 (ketamine) | Glutamatergic modulator | Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD) |
| GH Research | GHOO1 (inhalable 5-MeO-DMT) | 5-HT2AR agonist | Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD), Bipolar type 2 depression, Postpartum depression |
| Mind Medicine | MM-110 | 5-HT2AR agonist | Opioid use disorder |
| Cybin | CYBO03 (deuterated psilocybin) | 5-HT2AR agonist | Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), Bipolar type 2 depression, Anonerxia nervosa, Body dysmorphic disorder, Chronic cluster headaches, Opioid use disorder, Alcohol use disorder, Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Smoking Cessation, Cancer-related psychological distress |
| Biomind Labs | Ayahuasca | Serotonergic agonist | Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD) |
| Field Trip Health | FT-104 (Ketamine) | NMDA agonist | Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD), Postpartum depression, Generalized Anxiety Disorder |
| Small Pharma | SPL026 (IV DMT) | 5-HT2AR agonist | Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD) |
| Mindset Pharma | MSP-1014 | 5-HT2AR agonist | Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD), End of life angst |
| AWAKN Life Science | Ketamine | NMDA antagonist | Alcohol Use Disorder |
| Better Life Pharma | BETR-001 | 5-HT2AR agonist | MDD, Anxiety Disorder |
| PharmaTher Holdings | Ketabet | NMDA antagonist | Depression, PTSD |
| Gilgamesh | GM-1020 | NMDA antagonist | Depression |
| Beckley Psytech | BL-002 | 5-HT2AR agonist | Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD) |
Digital Therapeutics in the Psychedelics Space
Digital therapeutics (Dtx) deliver therapeutic interventions to patients through software programs for the prevention or treatment of the broad spectrum of physical, mental, and behavioural conditions. Digital therapeutics are greatly benefitted from the use of artificial intelligence and are expected to develop alongside drug treatments with psychedelics. Companies that could seamlessly incorporate the advantages of digital therapeutics into their offerings could have more commercial success
Some of the key development in digital therapeutics in mental space is,
- Field Trip: developed Portal and Trip as potential digital tools to help patients through therapy which helps monitor mood, and provides mindfulness tools, information, and guided meditations.
- Introspect (an Atai company): Is developing digital combination therapies with psychedelics to increase the safety and effectiveness for mental health patients.
- MindMed: Is developing Albert to leverage key partnerships and collaborations to accelerate drug discovery and de-risk clinical development
Key takeaways
Findings from clinical trials and other survey-based studies of psychedelics usage were shown to be associated with large effect size reductions in depression and anxiety and marked improvements in emotional well-being which increased with self-reported psychedelic usage. As per Mellalta Meets research, the neuropharmaceutical psychedelics across the multiple targeted indications is worth more than USD 500 million by the year 2025
