Biotech

Emyria expands MDMA analogue library

Mon 18 Jul 22, 10:44am (AEDT)
Generic image of pills on an orange background
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Key Points

  • Emyria, formerly Emerald Clinics, has discovered nearly 20 new compounds with UWA for possible psychotherapy use
  • MDMA analogues are intended to be less toxic versions of ‘ecstacy’
  • Drug has often been touted as having therapeutic benefits in the same vein as psychotherapeutic ketamine, ‘shrooms’

Emyria (ASX:EMD) has today announced its discovery of 18 new MDMA-like compounds in research with UWA designed for possible use in psychotherapy. 

The company's share price has jumped over 2% in morning trades.

The addition of 18 new compounds, the company notes, brings its total library of analogues to just over 125, with 45 of those discovered alongside UWA techs.

Analogues, in layman’s terms, are any chemical similar to another chemical. 

Emyria sees the compounds liable for exploratory inclusion in a number of areas.

Possible applications for MDMA compounds:

Treatments for non-neurological conditions related to serotonin 

Small molecule treatments for conditions like Parkinson’s 

Drug assisted psychotherapy for “major mental health disorders” 

Still a ways to go 

Emyria notes it is still relatively early days for its MDMA analogue drug creation activities.

It is worth noting the company has approvals to manufacture them in the first place with WA’s flagship group-of-eight University. 

So far, Emyria has filed patents for its existing analogue library and is awaiting screening results on a further selection of compounds (‘Batch 3.’) 

Before the company can commence to its first ever human trials, there is a lot of work to be done in the meantime.

The checklist towards Phase 1 trials is as follows:

  • Batch 3 screening results

  • Initial metabolic studies 

  • Preclinical assays using animal models 

  • Human cell line assays 

  • Phase 1 trials 

No timeline is given for the commencement of Phase 1 trials. 

How is Emyria doing? 

Currently, Emyria shares are worth 22.5c. 

Year to date performance sees the company down -42%.

However, on a one year basis, Emyria is up 12.8% and is outperforming the ASX200 on the same basis by 13.8%. 

It has gained 7.3% in the last month alone, giving it a current market cap of $60.5m. 

The company was formerly called Emerald Clinics and sought to provide cannabis health study data to governments and hospitals, but has since pivoted into the manufacture of exploratory medicinal products.

Will Emyria's work in novel psychotherapy treatments see its performance harmonise with the healthcare index?

 

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Written By

Jonathon Davidson

Finance Writer

Jonathon is a journalism graduate and avid market watcher with exposure to governance, NGO and mining environments. He was most recently hired as an oil and gas specialist for a trade publication.

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