Revive Therapeutics (RVV.C) entered into a sponsored research agreement and license agreement with North Carolina State University (NC State), developing a biosynthetic version of psilocybin today, according to a press release.
The original biosynthesis enzymatic platform was developed by NC State professor and researcher, Dr. Gavin Williams. That probably requires some unpacking, so hold on. Without getting too far into the work of enzymes and how they denature proteins, we can simply say that Williams’ platform could potentially provide a simple and efficient method for rapidly producing natural products, like psilocybin, using an engineered chemical pathway like that found in E. Coli.
“We are excited to partner with NC State and work with Dr. Williams and his team to develop a proprietary form of psilocybin that can be produced at scale for research and commercial purposes while allowing us to create our own unique product offerings with psilocybin in different delivery methods so as to treat the various mental health conditions and other diseases that psilocybin has shown to be a potential viable treatment option for. We continue to expand our psychedelic pharmaceutical objectives in specializing in novel products and uses of psilocybin for unmet medical needs,” said Michael Frank, CEO of Revive.
Dr. Williams and his team have developed their artificial enzymatic platform called the ‘Alcohol Dependent Hemiterpene’ pathway for the construction of alkyl pyrophosphates. They can use this pathway to build chemical building blocks for psilocybin with the goal of using the bacteria E. Coli as a factory for the production and development of psilocybin, effectively hijacking the bacteria’s growth faculties. It’s certainly not the first novel use for E. Coli and it won’t be the last.
Revive intends to develop and commercialize their own pharmaceutical-grade psilocybin using this biosynthesis technology at scale in order to support the company’s present psilocybin-based product line, including a thin-strip product in development with the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and the IP being developed by PharmaTher (PHRM.C).
Revive’s price dipped by a penny today, culminating in a price point of $0.60, which is beginning to look like a new baseline after having remained steady since coming off their early December jump to the $0.80 range. If you were a holder in the beginning of November when they were barely cracking the $0.24 mark, then congratulations on your triple.
—Joseph Morton
Full disclosure: Revive Therapeutics is an equity.guru marketing client.
