African Iboga Root Heads To Canadian Company Developing Natural Drugs To Help Treat Addictions

Clinical-stage natural psychedelics company Filament Health Corp. FLHLF has completed the first-ever Nagoya Protocol-compliant import of Tabernanthe iboga root from Gabon to the company’s R&D Vancouver facility.

Following approval by the Gabonese government under the international Nagoya Protocol (see Filament’s stance regarding sustainable supply) as well as the country’s Convention on Biological Diversity, the botanical raw material was shipped to Canada for analysis and development into ibogaine extract.

Filament will work together with iboga-expert company Terragnosis to transform the root into a total-alkaloid extract, whose founder Jonathan Dickinson is convinced the agreement will both “facilitate important healing work” and “support communities in Gabon” all at once.

See also: Filament Health's Q1 2023 Financial Results, Material Uncertainty On The Horizon

The iboga shrub is native to Central Africa and contains the psychoactive compound ibogaine. Both iboga and ibogaine have been traditionally used for ritual and ceremonial practices and have lately shown promise for treating conditions such as addictions (see results from a Brazil-based clinic.)

The fact that the agreement is Nagoya protocol-compliant means the sharing of benefits from the use of genetic resources in a fair and equitable way is secured.

“We have partnered closely with Filament Health, as well as with Blessings of the Forest Gabon and the A2E community that had such foresight to begin planting iboga almost 20 years ago. We are dedicated to this pathway of ensuring access and benefits for traditional knowledge holders in Gabon going forward,” Dickinson added.

On behalf of Filament, co-founder and CEO Benjamin Lightburn says the company holds “the preeminent botanical extraction expertise and regulatory proficiency in the psychedelic industry,” and is eager to explore the “promising yet under-researched drug.”

The first batch of the to-be-developed extract will be delivered to Terragnosis partner operating several retreat facilities in Mexico, Ambio Life Sciences.

Photo by Ralph Messi on Unsplash