Bright Minds Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ: DRUG) is a biotechnology company focused on developing novel therapies for neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders. One such therapy involves healing the central nervous system and brain through the regulation of serotonin.
As one afflicted with mild Absence Epilepsy, the Company has more than a passing interest.
Epilepsy
Let’s start here: Epilepsy is a brain disease where nerve cells don’t signal properly, which causes seizures. Seizures are uncontrolled bursts of electrical activities that change sensations, behaviours, awareness and muscle movements.
Although epilepsy can’t be cured yet, many treatment options are available.
DRUG recently announced the initiation of the BREAKTHROUGH Study, an open-label Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of BMB-101 — a highly selective 5-HT2C receptor agonist — , in adult patients with classic Absence Epilepsy and Developmental Epileptic Encephalopathy (DEE).
Agonists are drugs or naturally occurring substances that activate physiologic receptors, whereas antagonists block those receptors.
Make It So
The key aspects of DRUG’s provenance are fascinating. Proprietary systems, including scaffolding and BMB-101.
Ian McDonald, Chief Executive Officer of Bright Minds Biosciences, notes, “This compound is not only poised to make a significant impact in both the DEE and Absence Epilepsy communities but also has broad applicability across the 30% of all epilepsy patients who experience drug resistance.” The key phrase in that quote is the 30% of epilepsy patients who are drug resistant.
Absence Epilepsy
A person without a seizure may stare blankly into space for a few seconds. Then, the person typically returns quickly to being alert. This type of seizure usually doesn’t lead to physical injury, but injury can result during the period when the person loses consciousness. This aspect is particularly true if someone is driving a car or riding a bike during the seizure.
As I have this affliction, I can’t get a driver’s licence or ride any motorized vehicle solo. Kind of a pain, but given the alternative happy to comply; cars are expensive. As a reformed smoker, I miss cigarettes as much as driving. But I digress.
Globally, an estimated 5 million people are diagnosed with epilepsy each year. In high-income countries, there are estimated to be 49 per 100,000 people diagnosed with epilepsy each year. This figure can be as high as 139 per 100,000 in low- and middle-income countries.
Help looks to be on the way through Bright Minds.
Scaffolds are implants commonly used to deliver cells, drugs, and genes into the body. Their regular porous structure ensures the proper support for cell attachment, proliferation, differentiated function, and migration.
Here’s the Wikipedia educational part;
Tissue engineering is a biomedical engineering discipline that combines cells, engineering, materials methods, and suitable biochemical and physicochemical factors to restore, maintain, improve, or replace different types of biologicaltissues. Tissue engineering often involves the use of cells placed on tissue scaffolds to form new viable tissue for a medical purpose, but is not limited to applications involving cells and tissue scaffolds. While it was once categorized as a sub-field of biomaterials, having grown in scope and importance, it can be considered a field of its own.[1]
Other initiatives are compounds to address;
BMB-xxx Obesity and feeding behaviour
BMB-201 Treatment-resistant depression
BMB-202 Depression
Let’s let DRUG explain its approach to psychedelics;
Psilocybin, which is the psychoactive and psychedelic compound found in magic mushrooms, may have the ability to reset the functional connectivity of brain circuits known to play a key role in major depressive disorder (MDD) by its action on the 5-HT2A receptors. Unfortunately, because it is equally potent at the 5-HT2A and 5-HT2B receptors, the full potential of this compound cannot be achieved in MDD patients because of side effects.
The Bright Minds Biosciences can ameliorate these targeted 5-HT2A and 5-HT2A/C agonists.
Even though I have an overactive personal interest in DRUGS — don’t own any yet — have a look with a view to ownership in a small Pubco portfolio section.
