Bexson Biomedical announced today that it launched an R&D initiative to develop subcutaneous formulations of psychoactive therapeutics.

Santa Barbara, Calif.-based Bexson’s effort will apply its existing subcutaneous formulation technology to build several psychoactive drug scaffolds for treating mental health indications, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression.

Formulations developed through the R&D initiative are designed for controlled delivery through Bexson’s proprietary wearable subcutaneous infusion pump technology in development with Stevanato Group. The company recently earned a U.S. patent for its BB106 ketamine therapy through the proprietary delivery platform.

“As we developed our BB106 subcutaneous ketamine therapy we realized two things,” Bexson co-founder & CSO Dr. Jeffrey Becker said in a news release. “First, the wearable patch pump we are developing with Stevanato Group is the ideal platform for controlled release of a controlled substance. Two, Bexson’s patented formulation technology could be applied to a vast number of psychedelic and empathogen compounds to improve experience and accessibility, while providing increased safety and dosing precision.

“As our research has progressed, we have been pleased to find both our formulation and pump technology are highly modular.”

Bexson said it has initiated formulation development and stability work on several compounds that represent high-impact targets for treating mental health, addiction and pain disorders. Compounds such as DMT and mescaline are being formulated for subcutaneous administration.

Late last year, the company filed five provisional patents to apply its new delivery and formulation technology to a number of compounds and broad scaffolds with the potential to become new mental health treatments, including tryptamines, phenylethylamines, lysergamides, aminoindanes, benzofurans, arylcyclohexylamines, and cathinones.