On Monday, Awakn Life Sciences announced that it signed a drug development deal with Catalent for an orally disintegrating tablet to conduct feasibility studies to improve differentiation of its MDMA program. Catalent is a global provider of delivery technologies, development, drug manufacturing, biologics, gene therapies and consumer health products. It employs more than 14,000 people, including approximately 2,400 scientists and technicians, and did $4 billion in revenue last year. Here’s more: https://awaknlifesciences.com/awakn-signs-drug-development-agreement-with-catalent-for-zydis-technology-for-its-mdma-program

Also on Monday, Algernon Pharmaceuticals announced that it received approval to conduct a Phase 1 clinical study of an intravenous formulation of AP-188 (“N,N-dimethyl tryptamine” or “DMT”) for the treatment of stroke in the Netherlands from the Stichting Beoordeling Ethiek Biomedisch Onderzoek, an independent Medical Research Ethics Committee. The trial will be conducted at the Center for Human Drug Research (“CHDR”) in Leiden. Here’s more: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/algernon-pharmaceuticals-receives-approval-groundbreaking-110000273.html

Can microdosing affect meditation? Well, the Beckley Foundation is about to find out as it prepares to launch a new study observing how meditation skills evolve over three months of regular meditation practice and whether, how, and for whom microdosing may impact these skills. And if you’re interested, you may be able to participate in the study. Click here for more: https://www.beckleyfoundation.org/micro-meditation-study/

Did you know that the Sonoran Desert toad isn’t the only psychedelic amphibian?

Secretions from the Sonoran Desert toad, also known as the Colorado River toad, contain 5-MeO-DMT, and are becoming an increasingly sought after substance among psychedelics users, leading to conservation (not to mention ethical) concerns.

But the toad isn’t the only mind-altering amphibian. A tree frog native to the Amazon, Phyllomedusa bicolor, secretes a substance known as Kambô. Though the secretion contains nothing that “would fall into the category of a classic psychedelic,” humans applying it to their own skin reportedly experience potent physiological and psychological effects that can last for days.

You can read more about Kambô here.