Foreword

Karen Southern

Editor in chief

Editor

Karen Southern karen.southern@distinctivegroup.co.uk

Design

Distinctive Publishing, 3rd Floor, Tru Knit House, 9-11 Carliol Square, Newcastle, NE1 6UF Tel: 0191 580 5990 distinctivepublishing.co.uk

Advertising

Distinctive Publishing, 3rd Floor, Tru Knit House, 9-11 Carliol Square, Newcastle, NE1 6UF Tel: 0191 580 5477 e: liz.hughes@distinctivegroup.co.uk distinctivepublishing.co.uk

New year, new era of innovation

Words such as ‘spiritual’ and ‘life-affirming’ aren’t normally bandied around in traditional medical circles.

But a recent resurgence of research has shown the potential benefit of using psychedelic drugs in tandem with therapy to treat major depressive disorders. And the results are so promising that the UK regulator last year approved the first clinical trials with dimethyltriptamine (DMT). Early experimentation with psychedelic drugassisted therapy were documented in the 1950s and 60s, but fizzled out once ‘illegal’ substances became associated with the hippy subculture, causing a mainstream backlash. However, breakthroughs such as the latest DMT trials – carried out by UK company Small Pharma in collaboration with Imperial College London – seem to show that neural pathways can be literally reset, ending the perpetual loop of depressive thoughts. Will this radical reassessment of the treatment of depressive disorders signal the end of our dependence on ‘conventional’ pills and therapy … only time will tell! Read more about Small Pharma’s work on pages 12 to 14. R&D is of course one of the cornerstones of UK life sciences. The sector is entering yet another era of exciting innovations, reconfiguring boundaries that seemed impossible only a few years ago. But obstacles remain. The sector is on an upward trajectory, with massive investment streams championed by a government who sees life sciences as a key area of economic growth. However, the ecosystem feeding R&D, specialist skills and lab space needs nurturing too. As life sciences development expert Charles Walford points out on pages 16 to 18, a vast amount of capital may be available … but it’s not matched by the space needed to accommodate the industry. Creating a truly viable life sciences ecosystem needs business support at all stages of growth. Will 2022 be the year when the sector can start to Build Back Better too? Let’s hope so.

Distinctive Publishing or BioScience Today cannot be held responsible for any inaccuracies that may occur, individual products or services advertised or late entries. No part of this publication may be reproduced or scanned without prior written permission of the publishers and BioScience Today.