Field Trip Health Ltd. (CSE: FTRP) (OTC: FTRPF) provided an update on its in-vivo and in-vitro studies on FT-104, its lead drug candidate. FT-104 is a novel, synthetic psychedelic molecule developed by Field Trip. The company confirmed both the successful GLP synthesis of FT-104 and that FT-104 is a serotonin 5HT2A receptor agonist (the serotonin receptor believed responsible for psychedelic experiences).

Field Trip announced that FT-104 is a potent psychedelic molecule with rapid onset and short duration (roughly half the amount of time of natural psilocybin at 2-4 hours).  FT-104 was selected for its simplicity as well as its potential to distinguish itself with respect to its pharmacological features relative to naturally-derived substances, such as psilocybin, DMT, and LSD.

“Drugs like psilocybin and MDMA are showing significant efficacy in treating conditions like depression and PTSD,” said Dieter Weinand, Field Trip Board Member and former Chairman and CEO of Bayer Pharmaceuticals AG. “However, the relatively slow onset, and long duration of those drugs, which can result in treatment times lasting from 6 to 10 hours or more, makes them less attractive to patients and clinicians because of the time and treatment infrastructure required. Not to mention, they are not, generally speaking, protectable by intellectual property.”

Field Trip reported in a statement the following updates:

• FT-104’s binding constant (Ki) for the 5HT2A receptor is 120 nM, which indicates a potency similar to psilocybin¹;
• A 2mg/kg subcutaneous dose of FT104 to rats resulted in peak concentrations (Cmax) of the active agonist of 150+/-51 ng/ml at 60 min (Tmax) and bioavailability of 89%.
• The elimination of FT-104 from the bloodstream has a half-life (t1/2) of 40min, which compares to psilocybin with a half-life on the order of 120min²;
• A head twitch response (“HTR”) was observed after the administration of FT-104. The intensity of the HTR correlated well with plasma levels of the active which suggests that the EC50 (50% effective concentration) for the HTR is in the range of 100 ng/ml. It has been shown that the HTR in rodents is related to the intensity of psychedelic activity of a psychedelic substance, and thus, is an indicator of its potential for use as a catalyst to treat mood disorders.

“If the results suggested by these preliminary studies for FT-104 are confirmed in clinical studies, FT-104 will address several notable limitations of psilocybin and MDMA.  Plus, it would be more convenient,” added Weinand, “which could make it the first choice for clinicians and a better treatment option than psilocybin.”

Ronan Levy, Field Trip’s Executive Chairman noted, “Since inception, our philosophy at Field Trip has been that any psychedelics company needs to focus on both the development of psychedelic medicines and the delivery of psychedelic therapies.  We’ve always known that the Field Trip Health centers rolling out across North America would give us a competitive advantage in understanding and meeting the challenges of psychedelic medicine. Now, the latest results with FT104 suggest that Field Trip will also be the leader in the development of new psychedelic therapeutics.”