In June 2021, Atai Life Sciences raised $225 million in an initial public offering, a success seen as an indicator of investor excitement over the psychedelic renaissance in biomedicine. A billion-dollar world market was in the making for new psychiatric drugs, and the first to arrive would swell.
Therapeutic targets for compounds such as MDMA, psilocybin, DMT, 5-MeO-DMT and LSD have multiplied: depression, post-traumatic stress, anxiety, chemical dependency, anorexia, OCD, migraine… to bet on them.
Good results in phase 2 and 3 research and clinical trials continue to flow, but investor enthusiasm has waned. Throughout 2021, the shares of several startups began to fall, a sign that a consolidation phase may have begun, after companies and patent applications proliferated.
There are those who predict the disappearance, in the near future, of enterprises with a market value of less than US$ 300 million. With stocks plummeting, only half a dozen firms like Atai itself, Compass Pathways and MindMed keep their noses above it.
Rick Doblin, a pioneer of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (Maps), reckons that many will leave the race for lack of money. Not all scientific results will be promising enough.
Intellectual property, the fulcrum of this business model, represents an obstacle in sight. Field Trip, for example, saw stocks plummet from $8.29 to $1.81 a unit in one year. Its market value has shrunk to $109 million, and it’s no accident that it’s been tangled up in a patent mess.
The company applied for a patent on a type of tryptamine (a class of drug that includes the ayahuasca DMT) it developed, FT-104. Before the concession scheduled for this Tuesday (1/3), it came to light that another company, Mindset, had made a similar request, which would give it priority, and Field Trip withdrew the demand.
FT’s nightmare has deepened with the US drug agency DEA’s initiative to add five new tryptamine variants to the banned substance list, including one in which FT-104 transforms as it is metabolized in the body. Several affected startups tried to band together to challenge the measure, but the FT refused to join forces, defending the DEA only on its innovation. The suspended order was celebrated in psychedelic circles as a result of Field Trip’s “karma”.
Another rumored case involves an intellectual property lawyer who managed to patent the use of DMT and 5-MeO-DMT in vape pens (“electronic cigarette” capsules). Evidently, there is no invention there, both because these substances have been used for a long time –illegally, by the way– and because many do it with “vape pens”.
Compass Pathways is the most famous company to have a reputation shaken because of intellectual property. Its flagship is the “magic” mushroom psilocybin to treat depression, long used by traditional Mexican people and alternative therapists.
The company has already obtained several comprehensive patents covering “its” psilocybin (COMP360) and everyday aspects of substance-based psychotherapies. In the process of starting a phase 3 clinical trial, it still faces resistance from advocates of traditional knowledge and from companies or research institutions that are also investigating the drug as an antidepressant.
Entrepreneur Bill Linton, of the biotech firm Promega and founder of Instituto Usona (Compass’s competitor in psilocybin for depression), created a page, Porta Sophia, just to fight these patents that make light of previous innovations and knowledge.
His partner in the endeavor is patent attorney David Casimir, interviewed by The Microdose newsletter. The portal’s database has thousands of documents for consultation by patent officials, when deciding on specific applications, and is curated by dozens of experts.
Atai holds 21% of Compass, being one of the largest investors. Its leader is Christian Angermayer, who got involved a year ago in a controversy over patents with influencer Tim Ferriss. Rick Doblin of Maps has also had his spoon in the psychedelic intellectual property gulf.
“As Atai and Compass seek profit by blocking each other through patents on [de sínteses] or therapeutic processes they did not invent, they will fail and squander their potential to be a force for healing and profit,” Doblin wrote at the time.
On February 16, his NGO Maps received a donation of US$ 500,000 from Atai Impact, the philanthropic arm of the millionaire company highlighted at the beginning of this note. The blog contacted Doblin to see if the donation was an indication of any change in their positions on intellectual property in the industry.
“The donation did not change my vision and does not reflect any kind of commitment,” reacted the association’s executive director. “Atai recognizes that the progress made by Maps benefits the entire psychedelic ecosystem and that our pioneering work, alongside other [organizações] non-profits like Heffter, Beckley Foundation, Usona, etc., built the foundation on which Atai was created.”
Doblin clarifies that he is not against patents in principle, especially in the case of new molecules or unprecedented applications of already known ones. Nor does he consider that Atai’s donation signals any change in position:
“Compass’ patent on the polymorphic variety of psilocybin [COMP360] has been increasingly challenged, but I don’t think Atai will ask Compass to relinquish the patent unless or until they lose in court. I don’t think the cost of litigation is a factor, but I feel that Atai and Compass are painfully aware of the reputational damage they are suffering from trying to patent the psilocybin polymorph.”
——-
To learn more about the history and new developments of science in this area, including in Brazil, look for my book “Psiconautas – Travels with Brazilian Psychedelic Science”
Chad-98Weaver, a distinguished author at NewsBulletin247, excels in the craft of article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a penchant for storytelling, Chad delivers informative and engaging content that resonates with readers across various subjects. His contributions are a testament to his dedication and expertise in the field of journalism.
