How One Company Says It Aims To Demonstrate the Superiority of Psilocin Over Psilocybin in Treating Mental Health Conditions

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The following post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga.

Psilocybin, the commonly-known primary compound in magic mushrooms, is widely believed to be a leading candidate in a revolution in mental healthcare. 

Psilocybin owes its popularity to a less-known but arguably more important compound called psilocin.

Exclusively-natural psychedelic drug development company Filament Health Corp. (FHFLHLF7QS) recently announced Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval to start a clinical trial using both psilocybin and psilocin. 

Psilocin Versus Psilocybin: How They Differ and How They Relate

Psilocin and psilocybin are closely related — with one key difference. They are both found in magic mushrooms, but psilocybin is not bioactive in humans, meaning that on its own it has no hallucinogenic effect. In the human body, psilocybin converts into psilocin, which causes the hallucinogenic effects associated with magic mushrooms. 

Despite the potential benefits of directly administering psilocin, it has been little researched because it is very challenging to make stable synthetic psilocin, and naturally extracting it was deemed impossible. Filament Health states that it has for the first time developed proprietary technology to produce formulations of stable natural psilocin and psilocybin from magic mushrooms.

Trial Details and Importance

The phase 1 clinical trial will include 20 healthy subjects and will examine the effects of Filament’s three proprietary botanical drug candidates: PEX010 (oral psilocybin), PEX020 (oral psilocin) and PEX030 (sublingual psilocin), all of which are naturally sourced.

Filament believes this trial is significant because it is the first time the FDA has approved a clinical trial for natural psilocybin and for the direct administration of psilocin. 

“We are excited to directly compare the effects of psilocybin and psilocin in healthy individuals,” said Dr. Josh Woolley, the trial’s principal investigator and an advisor on Filament’s team. “This research can help us determine if psilocin has advantages over psilocybin as a potential therapeutic drug.”

Filament says this is a milestone not just for the company but for the psychedelic industry at large because, to date, synthetic manufacturers have been unable to produce a stable formulation of psilocin and enter it into a clinical trial.

If this trial goes well, it may open up pathways for other psychedelic drug companies such as Compass Pathways PLC CMPS, Mind Medicine Inc. MMED MMEDF, Field Trip Health FTRP FTRPF to be inspired to develop psilocin compounds in their next clinical trials.

Filament is hopeful about the direct administration of psilocin and the number of exciting potential benefits it may bring — all of which will be studied in the upcoming trial. Here’s what’s expected:

• Faster onset/shorter duration: Because there is no need to wait for the dephosphorylation process to occur, psilocin may act more quickly than psilocybin.
• More consistent dose: Because of differences in metabolism, some people may experience quicker or more complete conversion to psilocin from psilocybin, leading to a variable experience. By removing the need for metabolism by administering psilocin directly, this variability can potentially be removed.
• Lower gastrointestinal (GI) side effects: It’s possible that the GI side effects commonly associated with psilocybin are caused by the enzyme phosphatase, which is also primarily responsible for the dephosphorylation process. By removing the dephosphorylation, it’s possible that the GI side effects will be mitigated. This may be further compounded by the sublingual delivery of psilocin.
• Improved delivery methods: Because the enzyme that converts psilocybin into psilocin is primarily active in 1st-pass metabolism, it’s best to deliver psilocybin orally so it can reach the enzyme and be converted in the gut. However, because no such conversion is necessary for psilocin, it is a much better candidate to deliver through non-ingestive methods such as sublingually or transdermally.

Visit https://filament.health/ to stay up to date on the results of this trial and for more information about the company.

The preceding post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga. Although the piece is not and should not be construed as editorial content, the sponsored content team works to ensure that any and all information contained within is true and accurate to the best of their knowledge and research. This content is for informational purposes only and not intended to be investing advice.