Authors Harjeev Kour Sudan, Andy Man Yeung Tai, Jane Kim and Reinhard Michael Krausz Published November 19, 2023 Introduction The Dark Web is a subsection of the Internet only accessible through specific search engines, making it impossible to trace users. Due to extensive anonymity, the drug trade on the Dark Web makes regulation complicated. We …
Authors WaiFung Tsang, Simon GD Ruffell, Nigel Netzband, Angelina Jong, James Rucker, Quinton Deeley and Jack Hollingdale Published November 16, 2023 Background The potential benefits of ayahuasca on mental health conditions are well documented. This pilot study is the first to explore whether there is an association with ayahuasca use and reductions in inattention, hyperactivity …
Authors Rosalind Gittins, Roya Vaziri, and Ian Maidment Published November 16, 2023 Introduction Over the counter and prescription-only medication misuse is of concern. Little is known about the impact on friends/family who provide individuals with support. It is important to increase understanding to identify how substance misuse services (SMS) and others can better meet their …
The government’s ban on nitrous oxide comes into force today (Wednesday 8th November, 2023) and possession of the drug is now a criminal act in the United Kingdom. Drug Science’s founder, Professor David Nutt, says: “We believe the ban is wrong. It is completely disproportionate to nitrous oxide’s harms. It will place a new burden …
The UK Patient Conference is being held in central London and online, Friday 3 November 2023. It brings together patients, industry, healthcare professionals, charities and members of the public to discuss current issues in the medical cannabis space. Everyone is welcome. Buy a ticket from £5 In the lead up to the event, we are …
Founded in 2010 by the neuropsychopharmacologist Professor David Nutt, independent research charity Drug Science is the leading organisation of its kind in the UK — we built a renowned international reputation as thought leaders, particularly around the study of cannabis and psychedelics. Today, we launch Drug Science Consultancy, to provide research advice and consultancy services …
The UK Patient Conference is being held in central London and online, Friday 3 November 2023. It brings together patients, industry, healthcare professionals, charities and members of the public to discuss current issues in the medical cannabis space. Everyone is welcome. Buy a ticket from £5 In the lead up to the event, we are …
Drug Science Consultancy provides research advice and consultancy services to businesses, governments and other stakeholders on all drug related areas, with particular emphasis on the emerging cannabis and psychedelic medicine markets.
We are a separate, commercially oriented trading arm of the Drug Science charity, and all profits are returned to the charity to support its charitable objectives.
We have extensive experience across a range of scientific disciplines and research and development approaches. Our team includes experts in epidemiology, quantitative and qualitative methods, pharmacology, neuroscience and neuroimaging, as well as clinical trial design. In addition, we understand the regulatory landscape for cannabis and psychedelics, and we can provide guidance on navigating these complex bureaucratic processes.
Drug Science Consultancy is committed to providing the highest quality research advice and consultancy services. We work with our clients to ensure that their research is well-designed, ethical, and compliant with all relevant regulations. We also provide regular updates on progress and make ourselves available to answer questions.
We are working together with a trusted group of Contract Research Organisations and have established partnerships with the leading academic institutions in the UK as well as a range of external experts globally.
Our team will systematically assess the boundaries, objectives, requirements, and deliverables of projects. These foundations give clients a clear understanding of what the project can achieve and how it will be executed. This will often include gathering information about the issue that your project seeks to address, existing solutions, risks, feasibility, budget, and timelines.
Projects often involve collaborations between multiple organisations. Our reputation and existing collaborations means we are well placed to identify potential partners and manage collaborations that may include Contract Research Organisations (CROs), technology providers, universities, drug developers and other key stakeholders.
Drug Science has extensive experience especially in the domains of medical cannabis and psychedelics, allowing us to distinguish credible entities from those who are not. We provide vetting services to assist organisations in safeguarding themselves from potential deception.
Our experienced team is proficient in crafting compelling grant proposals tailored to the unique requirements of the cannabis, psychedelic, and healthcare sectors. We understand the intricacies of grant applications, from research funding to nonprofit initiatives. By leveraging our expertise, we can help you articulate your vision, align your goals with funding opportunities, and increase your chances of securing vital financial support for your projects.
We have extensive experience in conducting different types of qualitative research including interviews, focus groups, content analyses, and media analyses amongst others. These approaches are especially important when looking at a novel topic or idea to gain a deep knowledge of current developments in the field and to understand public and media perceptions of them.
We can provide methodological advice across a range of issues including identification of target population/s and implementation of sampling strategy, design of appropriate assessment batteries including identification of existing validated questionnaires addressing specific topics; analysis and reporting of results. We have experience with novel strategies for targeted recruitment, incorporation of electronic and passive assessments from e.g., wearable devices.
We are uniquely positioned to collect and analyse real-world evidence (RWE) – that is data collected as part of routine administrative practice including clinical practice. We believe that the future of clinical research will take place in the ‘real world’ which is why we conducted Europe’s largest RWE study into medical cannabis. With a proven track record of being able to deliver such studies, we can guide clients through every step of the process.
We have extensive experience in a range of analytical techniques including descriptive, psychometric and inferential approaches incorporating aspects of complex sampling and missing data.
We conduct narrative and systematic reviews to identify studies relevant to your research and development needs. The literature review can be used to identify gaps in knowledge and to inform the design of future research.
We can develop a detailed plan for your clinical trial. The protocol includes precise information about the study design, the participants, the interventions, the data collection methods, and the statistical analysis plan.
Once the clinical trial protocol has been developed, we can coordinate the initiation and delivery of the trial incorporating the synchronisation of all stakeholders involved in the trial, including ethical review boards, healthcare services, sponsors, CROs, and regulatory agencies.
We understand the complexities of legal and regulatory requirements for conducting research with scheduled drugs such as cannabis or psychedelics and for other interventions, such as those aimed at reducing the harms associated with non-medical use of drugs. This can be a complex process, and we can help you to navigate these requirements.
We write up scientific or regulatory results based on data emerging from your research. This can be in the form of reports, academic publications, or even social media posts.
We offer strategies for communication of research results and help to ‘translate’ the science into a format that ensures the public understanding of the scientific findings. This may involve acting as scientific and/or clinical liaisons to represent companies to the public, policy makers, regulatory authorities, clinicians, healthcare services and to governments.
Our creative team is able to help companies designs pitch decks, digital assets and infographics that not only convey information effectively but also captivate your target audience. With a keen eye for aesthetics and a deep understanding of visual storytelling, we collaborate closely with you to tailor these materials to your unique brand identity and messaging.
Drug Science is renowned for orchestrating world-class events that consistently reach full capacity. We can collaborate with you to tailor events for diverse audiences and effectively promote them to ensure strong attendance.
Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Drug Science, David is the Edmond J. Safra Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology and Head of the Centre for Psychedelic Research, at Imperial College London. One of the world’s leading researchers on drugs, David continues to fight for evidence-based drug policies.
Mike is Chief Medical Officer at Drug Science, a consultant neurologist, as well as Founder Chair of the Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society, Chair of the Cannabis Industry Council and Chair of Maple Tree Med Can Consultancy. A global medical cannabis expert, Mike has dedicated his career to the development of neurological rehabilitation and medical cannabis treatments and education.
Michael is Chief Research Officer at Drug Science and has previously worked as an academic researcher in mental health and drug science in Australia, the US and UK. He is an epidemiologist and research methodologist and has extensive experience running studies including cross-sectional studies, prospective observational studies of general population and clinic samples, genetically informed and real world data.
Long standing Head of Research and currently CEO of Drug Science, Anne is a Chartered Psychologist, with extensive experience in both qualitative and quantitative drug research, especially medical cannabis and medical psychedelics. Anne holds honorary senior positions at both King’s College London and Imperial College London.
Hannah is Senior Researcher at Drug Science, as well as Associate Director of Research at Awakn. Hannah’s experience ranges across biochemistry, neuroscience, pre-clinical and clinical research, and she has led research on medical cannabis and psychedelics.
Rayyan is a Senior Researcher at Drug Science, and postdoctoral fellow at Imperial College London. He has led clinical and neuroscience research in the field of psychopharmacology, and offers extensive experience in clinical trials, as well as biomedical, psychedelic and cannabis science.
Alkyoni is Research Officer at Drug Science, where she is instrumental in data collection and analysis of Project Twenty21 (T21), the UK’s first medical cannabis registry. She is experienced in large scale project management, stakeholder communications as well as protocol development.
Head of Operations at Drug Science, James is our legal and regulatory consultant with experience in the UK, Canada, Australia, USA, Israel and various EU member states. James contributed to the development of the world’s largest psychedelic Real World Evidence project that utilises medical psilocybin products and is able to advise on law and regulatory pathways.
Mags is our Head of Projects and Communications with extensive marketing and project management experience from the corporate advertising sector. She works across all aspects of the business; managing strategic communications, curating educational events for various sectors, as well as being a main point of liaison with key partners and stakeholders.
We are global thought leaders in medical cannabis and medical psychedelics research and committed to providing the highest quality research advice and consultancy services. We work with our clients to ensure that their research is well-designed, ethical, and compliant with all relevant regulations. We also provide regular updates on our progress and make ourselves available to answer questions.
Authors Octavian Dixon Ritchie, Cameron N Donley and Gabrielle Dixon Ritchie Published September 6, 2023 Background On February 3, 2023, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care, announced that on July 1, 2023, the psychedelics 3′4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and psilocybin will be medically accessible and regulated for psychiatric use in …
Authors Petter Grahl Johnstad Published September 6, 2023 Abstract The world has a long-standing system of drug control intended to suppress the use of a range of psychoactive drugs on the basis that such use is very harmful both to the users themselves and to their social surroundings. This perception of harmfulness has a long …
Authors Anoek S Van Vugt, Josjan Zijlmans, Ramon Lindauer and Levi Van Dam Published September 1, 2023 Background PTSD in adolescence causes much suffering and has substantial health-care costs. Many patients with severe PTSD do not respond to psychotherapy or continue to have symptoms despite trauma-focused psychotherapies and psychopharmacological treatment. A recent alternative in the …
Authors Zakaria Belrhiti and Fatima Zohra Serghini Published September 1, 2023 Background Worldwide, approximately there are 15.6 million people who inject drugs. Recently, a rising prevalence of hepatitis C virus among the people who inject drugs community (8.2 million, 40 to 80% of people who inject drugs) urged governments to implement targeted preventive and structural …
Authors Hannah Thurgur, Anne Katrin Schlag, Elizabeth Iveson, Adele Hosseini, Michael Lynskey, David J. Nutt Published August 31, 2023 Abstract Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection can result in a range of persistent symptoms impacting everyday functioning for a considerable proportion of patients, a condition termed Long coronavirus disease (COVID) or post COVID-19 syndrome. …
Dr Rose Crossin Department of Population Health – University of Otago, Christchurch Drug harm is a significant public health burden in Aotearoa New Zealand (1,2,3); though harms are not evenly distributed across the population. Māori are the indigenous population of Aotearoa New Zealand, making up approximately 17% of the total population, and have a notably …
It is with very great sadness to inform you that the wonderful Dr Brigitta Brandner passed on the 19th July 2023. As an expert in Pain and Anaesthesiology, Brigitta was a key member of Drug Science’s Scientific Committee for many years. She contributed enthusiastically to expert groups on analgesics, such as contrasting the effects of cannabis/cannabinoids with …
Authors Benjamin A. Korman Published July 31, 2023 Abstract Rising international migration, paired with increasing public support for far-right political parties, poses a growing challenge to the countries tasked with successfully integrating immigrants into their society. Further complicating this matter is the fact that the acculturation process which immigrants undergo to fully integrate into their …
Authors Antonio Metastasio, Silvio Mignogna, Riccardo Paci, Milena Mancini, Fabio Melelli, Enrico Lando, Ornella Corazza and Giovanni Stanghellini Published July 31, 2023 Abstract Since its discovery in 1943, LSD has been used by artists, scientists, and intellectuals, amongst others, to stimulate their creative insights. Federico Fellini, one of the most important film directors in the …
By Mags Houston – Head of Projects and Communications at Drug Science Even before I joined the Drug Science team, the Drug Science podcast has been a vital and inspiring source of information for me when it comes to UK drug policy. I recall listening to a couple of early episodes as I prepared for …
Dr Fiona HuttonAssociate Professor at the Institute of CriminologyDirector Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University, Wellington Dr Geoff NollerBioethics Department, Dunedin School of Medicine, University of Otago, Dunedin Alice McSherry Doctoral Candidate at the School of Environment, University of Auckland While cannabis based medicines hold out the promise of much needed relief, at the same …
Authors Balázs Szigeti, Lawrence D. Phillips and David Nutt Published July 17, 2023 Background The two pillars of modern medical research are where in most randomized controlled trials (RCTs), the active treatment is compared with placebo. A recent expert consensus survey endorsed the statement that ‘Results from placebo-controlled trials are more reliable than results from …
With first human study, Scientists believe a drug found in Amazonian plants could help the UK’s stroke victims — and the 1.81 million of us who live with depression For centuries, certain plants in the Amazon basin (such as Mimosa tenuiflora and Diplopterys cabrerana) have been used in traditional medicine and ritual. This is due …
Authors Jon Waldron, Meryem Grabski, Tom P Freeman, Margriet Van Laar and Valerie Curran Published July 4, 2023 Background Cannabis was rescheduled in the UK in November 2018 so that it can now be prescribed as a treatment for certain medical conditions. It is not yet known whether this has had an impact on peoples’ …
By Professor Valerie Curran and Professor Ilana Crome In 1989, David Nutt accepted the BAP Council’s invitation to become the Managing Editor of their flagship publication, the Journal of Psychopharmacology (JoP). The first edition of JoP in 1987 had been published by Oxford University Press (OUP). However, the Journal subsequently faltered because of problems with …
Authors Sean M Viña and Amanda L Stephens Published June 23, 2023 Abstract Although there is a growing support for the use of psychedelics to improve the health of marginalized groups, there are some critical gaps. First, no empirical studies have examined the effects of psychedelics on Black Americans. Second, there is little research on …
Written by Sally Turner MSc What is 5-MeO-DMT? 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine, or ‘toad venom’ as it’s better known, is a tryptamine psychedelic that occurs naturally in multiple species of plants and shrubs, is present endogenously in some humans (1, 2), and is excreted by the Colorado river toad (hence the nickname). 5-MeO-DMT has been consumed by indigenous …
Authors Rayyan Zafar, Maxim Siegel, Rebecca Harding, Tommaso Barba, Claudio Agnorelli, Shayam Suseelan, Leor Roseman, Matthew Wall, David Nutt and David Erritzoe Published June 12, 2023 Abstract Psychedelic therapy has witnessed a resurgence in interest in the last decade from the scientific and medical communities with evidence now building for its safety and efficacy in …
Authors Adriana D’Arienzo and Giorgio Samorini Published June 6, 2023 Abstract In recent years, the historical record of psychedelic therapy in Europe and the Americas has undergone considerable revision. In this article, we contribute to this re-interpretation by sharing documentation relating to psychedelic therapy carried out in Italy during the period 1927–1966. Our library research …
Authors Paul McCrone, Henry Fisher, Clare Knight, Rebecca Harding, Anne K. Schlag, David J. Nutt and Joanna C. Neill Published June 2, 2023 Abstract Background: There is growing evidence to support the use of the psychedelic drug psilocybin for difficult-to-treat depression. This paper compares the cost-effectiveness of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy (PAP) with conventional medication, cognitive behavioural …