PsyCap Recap: PurMinds NeuroPharma

The article PsyCap Recap: PurMinds NeuroPharma was originally published on Microdose.

How can we increase the odds of success in getting a drug candidate from the preclinical stage to the market? This is the problem PurMinds is trying to solve. 

PurMinds NeuroPharma is a biotech company “applying lessons from oncology and big tech, using advanced technology to discover and screen small molecules in order to successfully develop effective drugs and design clinical trials to treat neurological disorders.”

​Their executive team joined us at the last Psychedelic Capital event to present their work and discuss what makes their plan different. The panel was hosted by founder and CEO Janet Qi; Dr. Jonathan Grima, Chief Scientific Officer; and Susan Chapelle, Chief Operating Officer. 

Here are some highlights: 

Dr. Jonathan Grima: “We’re very interested in trying to develop novel and cutting edge therapeutics for devastating neurological and psychiatric disorders.We have a big focus on studying diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and even chronic traumatic encephalopathy due to traumatic brain injury.

By using cutting-edge neuroscience pre-clinical tools, PurMinds wants to more effectively and efficiently screen small molecules, hoping to identify the most promising indications, and test whether the molecules of interest are likely to be successful in clinical trials.

Trials cost money, and people need help, so let’s get more efficient at this thing.

“It’s no secret that there is a high drug failure rate for neurodegenerative diseases. Many clinical trials have unfortunately failed time and again, and one of the biggest reasons for this is due to lack of clinical efficacy.

“In other words, drugs that seem to have therapeutic efficacy in mice unfortunately end up failing when tried in human patients. This is what we believe here at PuMinds. We truly believe that the way forward, the way to help increase the success of these clinical trials is through precision neuromedicine delivering the right drug for the right patient.

“We believe in pioneering the use of artificial intelligence and human data to develop novel therapeutic targets and developing those into commercial entities.” 

Sounds good to me. Although definitely still in the early stages, PurMinds seems to be building a solid foundation in a segment of the industry that’s in need of strong clinical development. PurMinds is in the process of raising $10 million dollars in Series A funding, followed by $40 million in Series B. 

Visit their website here and check out their full presentation here.

Also, see our previous interview with CEO Janet Qi:

Interested in neuro-generation from psychedelics? Check out New Yale Study Shows Psilocybin Spurs Growth of Neural Connections Lost in Depression.

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