Magdalena is focused on developing novel, natural prescription medicines derived from plants for mental health indications including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adults, social anxiety, and depression.

Many commonly used neuropsychiatric medications have side effects such as personality changes or sedation. With centuries of use by Indigenous healers and traditional psychiatrists, plant-derived medicines offer potential new mechanisms of action for treating mental disorders while being potentially safer than the small molecule drugs that may have “off target” effects.

ADHD in Adults

Magdalena has identified candidates in Jaguar’s plant library that may prove beneficial for addressing ADHD in adults.

Once considered a childhood disorder, ADHD is now acknowledged to persist into adulthood in approximately 50–65% of individuals, and impacts an estimated 5.2% of U.S. adults aged 18–44.

Treatment of ADHD remains challenging. An estimated 20-50% of adult patients either are non-responders to stimulants or cannot tolerate the adverse effects of current therapeutics.

New therapeutics in development for the global ADHD market, which is projected to reach a value of US$18.69 billion by 2030 according to a report by Grand View Research, show promise but continue to have significant side effects.

Magdalena looks forward to developing a potential plant-based alternative drug for adult ADHD that is both safe and efficacious, especially with respect to executive function, the cognitive skill deficit found in almost all pediatric and adult ADHD patients.

Social Anxiety & Depression

Social anxiety and depression are common co-morbidities of ADHD.

Social anxiety, typified as extreme fear in social settings and debilitating social withdrawal, often has an age of onset during late childhood. Common treatments include medication and psychotherapy.

Unmet needs in the treatment of anxiety disorders include the need for more effective, rapidly acting, and better tolerated medications. Botanical drugs offer these potential advantages.

Current medications for treatment of depression are often ineffective as well as personality altering. Unmet needs in depression include medications with greater overall effectiveness as well as improvement in the patient’s ability to function day to day. Botanical drugs have the potential to meet these needs while also offering an improved safety profile.