Mind Cure (MCUR.C) launches second stage of ibogaine manufacturing

Mind Cure Health (MCUR.C) announced they have launched the second stage of manufacturing pharmaceutical grade ibogaine to be used in clinical research.

MINDCURE will be assessing the quality of the synthetic ibogaine when produced at scale to determine the timing and cost for commercial-scale manufacturing for the product. Ibogaine is a naturally occurring psychoactive substance which can be found in the roots of the iboga tree, a tree native to west Africa.

MINDCURE’s launching of the second stage of manufacturing comes less than two months after they completed the first stage of manufacturing back in early June, which in turn only came a few months after their pivot to ibogaine. The first stage lasted from the March to the start of June, so if that is any indication this stage should take until October or November.

“We are now one step closer towards our goal of manufacturing synthetic ibogaine at a commercial scale for research purposes,” commented Kelsey Ramsden, President and CEO of MINDCURE. “We are currently working on proving the ability to scale up the production, and our next step will be to test the ibogaine to ensure it meets the highest standards of pharmaceutical grade product.”

While most people think of methadone as the usual drug to help ween people off opiates, ibogaine offers an alternative that can be used to help treat opiate addiction. Although studies are limited, some show that it interrupts addiction, although it did not “cure” people’s addictions. In a long-term study, 4 out of 30 patients did not relapse, while most relapsed within the first two months. Research has shown ibogaine affects receptors related to pain, addiction, and neurodegenerative conditions.

That being said, research into the substance has been limited. In their press release, MINDCURE notes that scaling up their production would allow the MCUR research team to and potentially use it for some trials.

“Ibogaine has the therapeutic potential to treat addiction and it shows promise in addressing other brain injuries as well,” stated Joel Raskin, MINDCURE’s Chief Medical Officer. “Researchers need access to a standardized, high-quality supply of ibogaine that ensures consistent dosing and reliable results. Our goal is to be the company that provides this supply.”

Two weeks ago, MINDCURE filed two patent applications for chemical synthesis routes, both of which successfully produced ibogaine. During this second stage of manufacturing, MCUR will be running financial models to determine which of the two chemical synthesis routes is more economically viable and well suited to being scaled up, and are currently being assessed to determine which one will be selected for further development first.