Lusaris Therapeutics launched with a $60 million Series A financing focus on advancing LSR-1019, a sublingual formulation of 5-MeO-DMT in development for TRD.
Lusaris Therapeutics launched Wednesday with a $60 million Series A financing round with the goal of advancing LSR-1019, a sublingual formulation of 5-MeO-DMT in development for treatment-resistant depression (TRD).
The company has also signed a strategic collaboration deal with Catalent to license Catalent’s Zydis fast-dissolving tablet technology for the drug. Lusaris plans to launch a Phase I trial of the drug “imminently” and expects topline data in mid-2023.
5-Methoxy-N, N-dimethyltryptamine or 5-MeO-DMT is a fast-acting and quick-to-clear serotonergic psychedelic found in some plant species and secreted by the glands of the Colorado River toad.
Neil Buckley, COO at Lusaris, said in a statement that the company has encouraging preclinical data, a proven technology to dose the drug “and an expected rapid and short psychotropic experience,” so that LSR-1019 has the possibility of being a “transformative treatment” for TRD and other serious mood disorders.
The drug is cleared so quickly by enzymes in the gut and liver that it is pharmacologically inactive when dosed orally. The company’s proprietary sublingual drug tablet dissolves under the tongue in seconds, allowing fast absorption into the bloodstream and bypassing the gut. Lusaris believes this approach is scalable and simplifies dosing.
The company is working to develop a portfolio of novel serotonergic neuroplastogens for other neuropsychiatric and neurological diseases, including migraine and cluster headaches.
Serotonergic neuroplastogens act as catalysts for neuroplasticity in the brain. They appear to promote synapses’ structural and functional plasticity, where neurons connect and communicate with each other. Changes in synaptic circuits are believed to be involved in learning and memory.
A range of psychiatric disorders demonstrates deficits in neuroplasticity, which is why serotonergic neuroplastogens and other psychedelic compounds have generated interest as possible therapeutics for those disorders, including addiction and anxiety.
Andrew Levin, M.D., Ph.D., interim CEO of Lusaris, called psychoplastogens “a promising treatment approach” that is supported by “compelling scientific evidence” in TRD patients, as well as others with severe neuropsychiatric conditions.
Levin is also a managing director of RA Capital, which led the Series A round. Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners, Deep Track Capital, Boxer Capital and an undisclosed investor also participated.
