PharmaDrug Inc announced it has entered into a sponsored research collaboration with the Terasaki Institute for Biomedical Innovation to work on an ocular psychedelic drug delivery platform.
The Terasaki Institute is a biotechnology institute that develops medical devices and cutting-edge protocols for a variety of diagnostic, monitoring and treatment applications.
The two groups will develop the platform to transmit tryptamine-based pharmaceuticals such as DMT to treat eye diseases like glaucoma, which is the second-leading cause of blindness in the world.
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Research indicates that certain tryptamines have shown promise in treating intraocular pressure (IOP) by selectively acting on multiple different serotonin receptors, according to PharmaDrug.
The company said that topical application of several different tryptamines showed early promise in preclinical models of elevated IOP, but challenges like formulation, delivery, the potential for undesirable hallucinogenic side effects, and the controlled substances act of 1970 have worked to halt the development of the promising treatment.
PharmaDrug and the Terasaki Research Institute will study cell-based basic research, active pharmaceutical ingredient formulation, and the exploitation of novel delivery technologies aimed at improving patient outcome by delivering the optimal drug in a convenient format that improves compliance and diminishes side effects.
"We are very excited to partner with the Terasaki Institute, a leader in the design and development of novel drug delivery technologies. This relationship will expedite our development plan and move us meaningfully closer to our goal of evaluating DMT and other tryptamines for various types of eye disease, which require both a pharmacological and delivery solution to fill the significant treatment gap in glaucoma," said Daniel Cohen, CEO of PharmaDrug, in a statement.
"By aligning ourselves with thought leaders in the space we aim to tackle the worthy challenge of developing a novel delivery device that will provide sub-psychedelic quantities of candidate tryptamines to the front of the eye."
Dr. Ali Khademhosseini, CEO of the Terasaki Institute, added that the group was excited to be working with PharmaDrug.
“PharmaDrug's unique proposed solution to the challenges that are present in eye diseases is what motivates the Terasaki team to answer the call in developing a drug delivery system that would positively affect the millions of people who suffer with impaired vision and compromised quality of life.”
Toronto-based PharmaDrug is developing a range of psychedelics, cannabis and naturally-derived drugs that it hopes to commercialize.
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