An unusual announcement in the clinical psychedelic sector emerged yesterday detailing research undertaken by a promising new company. Although there are many novel developments in the industry regularly, what makes this news so peculiar is that this new industry pioneer will be primarily run by a married neuroscientist couple.

On Thursday, Tessellate announced its company debut. The new pharmaceutical outfit aims to develop and commercialize novel therapeutics capable of treating a variety of mental health disorders. The company will work toward progressing clinical applications for psychoactive compounds through intricate studies with aspirations to enhance efficacy associated with psychedelic therapies and mitigate risks involved.

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Tessellate will be primarily managed by Dr. Dustin and Dr. Rochelle Hines, a husband and wife duo studying the impact of psychedelics on mental health from their lab headquartered at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV). Both scientists received a PhD from the University of British Columbia (UBC) and undertook rigorous post-doctoral training in neuroscience at Tufts University School of Medicine in Massachusetts.

Dustin and Rochelle are responsible for operating The Hines Group Laboratory at UNLV. The pre-clinical facility is a fully staffed, elaborate, cutting-edge psychedelic research complex.

Rochelle possesses a U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency license that permits the use of controlled substances for designated research endeavours. Together, the couple strives to advance novel therapeutics and has been involved in multiple industry-sponsored research ventures prior to forming Tessellate.

Dustin and Rochelle appointed Paul Rosen as President at Tessellate, an attorney and entrepreneur with strong ties in the legal cannabis industry. Rosen is a Co-Founder of Cronos Group Inc (CRON), a renowned rare cannabinoid producer that was the first legal cannabis company ever listed on the Nasdaq exchange; and CEO of 1933 Industries (CSE: TGIF) (OTCQB: TGIFF), a Las Vegas-based cannabis cultivator serving the medicinal market.

Mugglehead reached out to Rosen via phone call and he expressed that prior to becoming involved with Dustin and Rochelle at Tessellate he had been keeping tabs on the psychedelic industry for a long time. Rosen believes that psychedelic therapies will enable a positive paradigm shift in mental health.

Initially, Rosen had been observing some of the progress made by the Hines couple and thought that their work was innovative and exemplary. Eventually, he reached out to Dustin and Rochelle via LinkedIn and arranged to meet with them in Vegas.

Rosen believed that the scientist duo had access to prime infrastructure for their studies at UNLV, and that a private company would have to spend over US$100 million to replicate their research facility at the public institution.

When the couple met with Paul in person they praised him for his accomplishments with the Cronos Group and were impressed by his professional background. They also needed advice regarding how to launch a private company from a public university like UNLV. Following detailed discussion, the two appointed Rosen into the new leadership position he currently holds.

Photos via 1933 Industries – Paul Rosen

Tessellate has developed six substituted phenethylamine (PEA) libraries and four modulators to assist with psychedelic therapy in clinical settings. Simply put, Phenethylamines essentially act as a neurotransmitter. The current PEA libraries that Tessellate operates host 30 synthetic psychedelic molecule drug candidates in pre-clinical development for treating mental health afflictions.

“PEA psychedelics, which bear structural similarity to mescaline, are less explored in the psychedelic space and offer several possible advantages including increased specificity for the common target of psychedelics, known as the 5HT2A receptor,” said Dustin Hines.

The four modulators developed by Tessellate are designed to modulate the patient experience and therapeutic results of a psychoactive therapy session. These modulators can be taken before, during or after the administration of psychedelic compounds. The company credits these discoveries to its exceptional understanding of the configuration of brain activity underlying the psychedelic trip an individual experiences.

Paul Rosen explains further –

“We perceive this as a game changing technology and essential for the development of the entire psychedelic industry. Modulators address several concerns and anxieties that eligible patients may have regarding these disruptive therapeutic modalities. With one modulator a patient can access an offramp during a trip should they wish to stop. With another modulator, a patient can remove the need to stop their current SSRI therapy (antidepressants) before initiating psychedelic treatment. With a modulator taken pre-trip, the patient may enhance the efficacy of their trip, and with a modulator taken post-trip the patient may solidify the psychoplastogen effects that psychedelics cause in the days following a trip, which Tessellates research has corroborated are when the long-term therapeutic benefits of psychedelics are most likely to occur.”

Tessellate will soon be establishing phase one clinical trials for its top two drug candidates, namely the novel PEA Tsl8 108 and Tsl8 303 modulator. The company will also focus on continuing to promote the preclinical advancement of PEAs and novel modulator libraries through diligent research and development.

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