On the heels of launching a Phase 2b study of LSD in generalized anxiety disorder, MindMed (Nasdaq: MNMD) has dosed the first subject in a Phase 1 study evaluating MDMA-like substances in healthy volunteers.
MindMed is developing a synthetic enantiomer of MDMA as a potential treatment for core symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Early evidence suggests that its MM-402 MDMA-based drug candidate can reduce social impairment.
Like LSD, MDMA (methylenedioxy-methamphetamine) is a Schedule I drug. While the U.S. government outlawed LSD in 1968, MDMA was banned in 1985.
The FDA, however, is purportedly considering approving MDMA as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder in the coming years.
Matthias Liechti, principal investigator of the Phase 1 study on MDMA-like substances on behalf of MindMed, noted that the amphetamines MDMA and methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA) can have mixed subjective effects — especially at the onset of response…