☁️🍄 Issue No. 006: The Spirit Molecule

Happy Sunday! Welcome back to Headlines, your weekly download on the latest in mental health. And a very special welcome to the 176 new readers who have joined us. It’s great to see you here :)

Today, we’re digging into DMT and how a growing crop of companies are studying its potential to treat depression. We’re talking “machine elves”, alternate realities, and more. Shall we?👇

THE SPIRIT MOLECULE

DMT for depression is getting a boost.

• Small Pharma announced positive results in the first-ever major study on DMT for depression; a single dose provided notable and lasting antidepressant effects. It’s also conducting another trial with a version of DMT that lasts slightly longer.

• Gilgamesh Pharmaceutical is developing an “improved” version of DMT that will make its effects “a little warmer and empathogenic” and last up to an hour.

• Viridia Life Science, a subsidiary of biopharma giant ATAI Life Sciences, dosed its first subject with DMT in late October; results will be announced H1 2023. 

Elsewhere, Algernon NeuroScience is conducting a phase 2 DMT for depression study with Yale University, while Biomind Labs announced that its liquid inhaled DMT met trial goals.

WHAT IT IS

DMT, short for N,N-Dimethyltryptamine, is a powerful psychoactive molecule that occurs naturally in many plants and animals.

Its synthetic form was first discovered in 1931, but it wasn’t until the 1990s that researcher Dr. Rick Strassman really put DMT on the map. In many ways, his work triggered the psychedelic renaissance as we know it.

Of note: DMT is the psychoactive ingredient in ayahuasca, a brew used for centuries across South American cultures in healing and divination.

Also of note: Easy to mix up, DMT is a very different compound than 5-MeO-DMT, aka Bufo/toad venom. Though the two share a similar acronym, the experiences they deliver are worlds apart. 

THE BUSINESSMAN’S TRIP

Like LSD and psilocybin, DMT acts via the serotonin receptors of the brain, inducing hallucinations and changes in perception of time. When ingested in ayahuasca tea, users often undergo ~30 minutes of vomiting and hot/cold flashes before embarking on a vividly hallucinogenic four- to five-hour trip.

But when smoked, the experience kicks in near-instantly, lasting mere minutes. It’s often referred to as “the businessman’s trip” — short enough to fit in a lunch break. 

Despite its length, DMT offers one of the most potent experiences of any psychedelic. Many describe being catapulted out of their physical bodies into alternative realities, meeting spiritual entities, and having their sense of self, space, and time completely overthrown.

WHY IT MATTERS

MDMA, ketamine, and psilocybin have long headlined the psychedelic therapy movement. But as promising new studies like Small Pharma’s emerge, many are seeing DMT’s potential. With its lunch-break trip, the “spirit molecule” could change the game. 

Affordability is a major challenge in psychedelic therapy, and length of trip is directly associated with cost — the longer medical professionals are on call, the higher the bill. What’s more, people who ingest DMT—even regular users—don’t develop a tolerance. And studies show its antidepressant effects were powerful even without structured integration or therapy. 

As the economic toll of depression ticks over a staggering $210B, we’re in dire need of more cost-effective solutions to the mental health crisis. DMT stands out as a very “efficient” molecule to facilitate treatment — and companies are clearly taking note. 

LOOKING AHEAD

However, it’s early days. Existing studies, though encouraging, are quite small. And DMT is intense; not everyone wants to commune with machine elves.

In addition, many are calling foul at Western attempts to appropriate a deeply spiritual plant medicine and patent it for profit — startups like Filament Health have even developed an “ayahuasca pill.” 

Takeaway: As more board the DMT train, it’ll be important to remember that shorter isn’t always better. Companies innovating new compounds shouldn’t prioritize healing people as cheaply as possible but as best they can, while also honoring indigenous insights.

Indeed, DMT sits at a uniquely powerful intersection — rooted in thousands of years of shamanic wisdom, carried forward in the race to solve a modern, billion-dollar problem.

Keen to add to the DMT discussion? Tweet me @melodaysong with your thoughts.

QUICK HITS

• Privacy woes. Hackers taunt students after data breach, FTC fines BetterHelp $7.8M for betraying customer data, and Peoplehood comes under fire. 

• Working out works. New study finds exercise 1.5x more effective than counseling or leading medications. 

• Clock’s Tik-ing. TikTok imposes screen time limit for minors; a House panel approves a bill to ban the app. 

• Cuts and closes. Cerebral sheds 15% of its workforce; Field Trip Health on the brink of shuttering clinics.

• A new era. Biden’s telehealth prescription plan will limit remote prescriptions to 30 days; refills thereafter will require in-person consultations.

NEWS & TRENDS

1) Should psychedelic therapists have experience doing psychedelics?

This week saw a contentious Twitter kerfuffle over this topic, dividing folks into “absolutely, yes” and “not necessarily.” Those in the yes camp state that psychedelics are such a unique and ineffable experience that there’s no room for debate — you’re either on the bus or you’re not. Meanwhile, others point out that every psychedelic trip is different, and that personal experience can actually lead to risks of grandiosity, overconfidence, and projection. It’s not so black and white after all. 

2) The dark side of girlhood

The youth mental health crisis is getting worse and worse, and no one has been hit harder than teen girls. This month, the CDC reported record levels of sadness among adolescent women, along with rising rates of eating disorders and self-harm. The usual suspects are all there: phones, COVID, social media, etc. But why the yawning gap between teen girls and boys?

For one, studies have shown that girls are more likely to be harmed using social media than boys. Meanwhile, others point out that, despite improvements in the last century, societal structures and attitudes remain largely patriarchal — the negative impact of such paradigms can’t be understated.

DEALS & DEBUTS

🙇 Headway, a marketplace for therapists, is in talks to raise $100M at a $1B valuation from investors a16z, Spark Capital, Thrive Capital, and more. Available in 15 states, the company works with insurers to make therapy more affordable.→ source

⏰ Awakn Life Sciences, a ketamine-assisted therapy provider, signed an agreement with Ken Starr MD Wellness Group to open a California addiction treatment facility; it also named PharmAIa Biotech as its exclusive MDMA supply partner.→ source, source

🦘 Optimi Health, a psychedelics producer, inked a distribution agreement with Mind Medicine Australia (MMA), a mental illness nonprofit, to provide medical-grade MDMA and psilocybin for psychedelic-assisted therapies. This summer, Australia will become the world’s first country to legalize psychedelics-as-medicine. → source

🏎️ One Mind, a mental health nonprofit, announced its inaugural One Mind Accelerator cohort with 11 emerging startups. From holistic treatments to AI-enabled precision psychiatry, each company will receive $1M alongside mentoring and more.→ source

🌱 Morgan Stanley unveiled the five winners of its second annual Alliance for Children’s Mental Health Innovation Awards. From a youth sports program to a barber-powered  project, each will receive $100K to scale their company. → source

📚 The Ketamine Research Foundation announced the launch of a new and improved ketamine library, featuring 5K titles with full-text references, new search functions, and an optimized user experience.→ source

WHAT I’M READING

• Breathe in, breathe out. The operating manual for your nervous system has been “under your nose since you were born.” → Every

• Isolation identity. Chronic loneliness isn’t just a feeling. It can quite literally rewire your brain. All about the dangerous catch-22. → Quanta Magazine

That’s a wrap! Thanks for joining along as always. 

As for me, I’ve touched down in beautiful Oahu and am eating inordinate amounts of poke and spending as much time as possible being held by the jungle, the ocean, and the mountains. Oh, and making memes.

Take care this week. And I’ll see you next Sunday.

-Mel

Thank you for reading Headlines. This post is public so feel free to share it.