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The new episode of the I am BIO Podcast explains why psychedelics aren't just for hippies, and USDA economists explain why we need agricultural biotech. Plus, it's officially Rachel King's first day as BIO's new interim CEO and we have the exclusive story. (693 words, 3 minutes, 27 seconds)
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Today is officially Rachel King's first day on the job as BIO's new interim CEO, where she will bring her passion for business, science, and policy to empower and support BIO's staff as we work to educate leaders and the public about how biotech can transform our society.
Bio.News sat down with her for an exclusive conversation about her career and how she got into biotech, the role of BIO, and why we need to support biotech innovation –
read it here.
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Industry, regulators opening their minds to psychedelics as treatments
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Psychedelic drugs as treatments for depression, anxiety, PTSD, and other illnesses are gaining scientific and market acceptance, opening an exciting area for development, says today’s new episode of the I am BIO Podcast.
“About 1 in 4 people suffer from neurological and psychiatric disorders, and the cost of treating these global mental illnesses is expected to rise to $6 trillion by 2030,” says Frank Wiegand, Chief Medical Officer of Beckley Psytech, a U.K. biotech developing neuropsychiatric solutions with psychedelics. “Usually they are lifelong diseases, which is quite a high amount of disability.”
Enter psychedelics—which can have effects in as little as 24 hours. Current drugs to treat mental illnesses can take weeks to have an effect and don’t work for everyone, says Kurt Rasmussen, CSO for Delix Therapeutics.
The effectiveness of psychedelics is apparently due to neuroplasticity, “the human brain’s ability to form and reform neural connections,” explains BIO’s podcast host and executive producer Theresa Brady.
With or without hallucinations: Delix Therapeutics develops psychedelics without hallucinogenic properties to make them safer for all types of patients; Beckley Psytech develops “a very powerful consciousness-altering drug” because hallucinations bring on a “mystical experience and states of what we call ego dissolution,” which, when guided by a psychotherapist, are essential to treatment.
Market potential: “Psychedelic-derived treatments could treat indications estimated to reach over $700 billion in total market size by 2028,” says Clara Burtenshaw, whose Neo Kuma Ventures backs 20 companies in the field.
The next steps: The FDA has approved clinical trials and “the U.S. is ahead of the pack in terms of regulatory momentum,” adds Burtenshaw.
Listen: The podcast is available now via Apple, Google, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
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USDA economists call for tech solutions to bolster farm productivity
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U.S. farm productivity continues to grow, but the pace is slowing due to adverse climate conditions, indicating a need for advances in biotech and other farming technology, USDA economists reported last week.
“Agricultural productivity growth rates in the last two business cycles, on average, were lower than in most earlier periods,” the researchers said. In the 2007-2019 business cycle, U.S. farm output grew by 0.61% per year. The previous cycle, 2000-2007, saw growth of 0.77% per year, also relatively “stagnant” compared to earlier cycles.
A history of growth: Technological advances allowed U.S. agricultural production to rise by about 2.7 times from 1948 to 2019, as the farm labor force dropped about 75% and land use fell 25%.
Blame it on the weather: “Overall, crop production is more volatile from year to year than livestock production as weather changes become more frequent,” the economists said.
They called for greater R&D investment and use of “updated technology,” including “drought-tolerant crops.”
We need biotech—which can help increase farm productivity in the face of climate change. In addition to drought, gene editing can reduce food loss and waste, improve nutrition, and even help food animals withstand the heat. In the long term, biotech can help reduce factors that drive climate change.
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More Agriculture and Environment News:
Agri-Pulse: Vilsack 'confident' in US corn exports to Mexico despite reported expansion of biotech ban
“‘The Deputy Agriculture Minister is entitled to his opinion but we are confident that for the sake of the Mexican livestock industry and to keep inflation in check, corn sales to Mexico will continue as planned given recent conversations with Secretary Villalobos,’ Vilsack said in a statement provided to Agri-Pulse.”
Crain’s Chicago Business: Illinois’ bioscience sector grows on key metrics
“A new report shows Illinois is among the top states where life sciences companies attract investment.” |
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