New Solutions in Neuropsychiatry

• Context: PTSD, MDD, anxiety driven by deficits in brain circuitry underlying emotional learning and processing^1,2
• Methylone rapidly induces neuroplasticity gene expression (e.g., BDNF) in brain areas underlying pathophysiology of PTSD, depression, and anxiety^3,4,5
• Methylone rapidly reduces myelin in amygdala, which correlates with PTSD severity^6,7
• Collaborative grant ($1M from US DoD) with leading Yale scientists awarded to support further work on neuroplasticity MoA

1) Fenster et al., Nat Rev Neurosci, 2018. 2) Hare and Duman, Mol Psychiatry, 2020. 3) Warner-Schmidt et al., American Society for Clinical Psychopharmacology annual meeting, 2023.  4) Kredlow et al., Neuropsychopharmacology, 2021. 5) Liu et al., Nature Communications, 2020. 6) Long et al., Translational Psychiatry, 2021.  7) Warner-Schmidt et al., in preparation 2023.

• Triple reuptake inhibitor and releaser (serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine)
• Rapid, robust serotonin and norepinephrine release in frontal cortex of the brain⁸
• No off-target toxicity expected, as no agonism or antagonism at 168 GCPRs⁷

7) Warner-Schmidt et al., in preparation, 2023. 8) Yu et al., under review, 2023

Unlike classical psychedelics, methylone is not hallucinogenic and does not directly interact with 5-HT2A receptors.⁷

7) Warner-Schmidt et al., in preparation 2023.