Numinus Wellness is developing an innovative method of delivery for psilocybin in clinical trials and research.
Numinus Bioscience, a research division of Numinus Wellness, is developing the psilocybin-containing tea bag, which the company says offers a substitute for whole mushrooms and other solid therapeutics.
With many people finding other ways of consuming psilocybin in research unappealing – such as whole mushrooms and pills – the company wanted to find a way to deliver the medicine in a better way.
To create the teabag, the company developed processes and procedures to deliver 25mg per dose using Numinus’ validated strains of Psilocybe cubensis.
The tea bag will be studied in a Phase 1 trial of practitioners receiving experiential training for psilocybin-assisted therapy, with the goal to be used in Numinus’ research, including trial partnerships at Cedar Clinical Research, Numinus’ clinical trial management division.
Numinus VP, Scientific Research, Innovation and Laboratory Operations, Sharan Sidhu, commented: “The Numinus team has developed the Psilocybe tea bag with scientific precision in mind.
“Our best-in-class team and resources allow us to control the full production process, from growth to finished product manufacturing, to deliver a product that is fully standardised.”
The product has also been submitted to Health Canada to be included on the psilocybin supplier list for the federal Special Access Program, through which health care providers can apply to provide psilocybin-assisted therapy, among other psychedelic-assisted therapies, to patients with demonstrable need.
Numinus Chief Science Officer, Dr Paul Thielking, cemented: “Numinus recognises that solid therapeutic products, such as whole mushrooms or pills, might be unappealing or difficult to use by certain populations, such as some people receiving palliative care for serious illnesses.
“This new product is part of our commitment to increasing accessibility to psychedelic-assisted therapies for those in need, while contributing to the growing research that suggests psilocybin use in combination with therapy may be highly effective for treating mental health disorders.”
If appropriate regulatory approvals are granted the tea bag will be used for the eventual treatment of clients in psychedelic-assisted therapy.
