In 2010, I received a number of samples of NCEs (New Chemical Entities) that I had developed*

One of these novel compounds was (and still is) called MEAI. I tested it, as I do with any new material, with a series of self-experiments (on myself) and the results were, well… disappointing. To be sure, it did have a psychoactive effect, but one that was not profound. It had an ambient buzz reminiscent of the effects of moderate drinking.

Consequently, I put the substance aside and labeled it (unwittingly) as 'uninteresting'. A year later, a new initiative led by Prof. David Nutt was hailed in the news as 'about to' announce a synthetic alcohol substitute that will cause less physiological damage and be less addictive than ethanol. As soon as I came across this information, I remembered MEAI and thought, 'Wait, it had the effect of moderate alcohol drinking.

I went back to this molecule and began to study it better, both pharmacologically and through 'social trials'. The 'social experiments' were conducted by several groups of informed and consenting volunteers, and they confirmed that the sensation of consuming MEAI (and incorporating the molecule into a non-alcoholic beverage) was indeed reminiscent of alcoholic inebriation.

But then something even more interesting and significant was discovered. A significant** percentage of the early groups of self-experimenters claimed that drinking one or two MEAI drinks was enough, but UNLIKE alcohol, there was no desire to continue drinking. I thought to myself, "this is interesting", it could be that MEAI is not only an alcohol substitute (which does not harm the liver and is not addictive) but also a substance that moderates consumption in the general sens

But before we understand how the MEAI molecule takes effect and what its mechanism is, it's worth remembering the mechanism of the molecule that it purports to replace - alcohol a.k.a ethanol. Ethanol binds to the GABA receptors and then is metabolized and converted into acetyldehyde. Acetaldehyde is a weak glutamate receptor agonist. But ethanol is consumed, in psychoactive terms, in huge quantities, and therefore it also leaves behind a huge trail of its downstream metabolic product – acetaldehyde. When the brain encounters a weak neurotransmitter in huge quantities, the result is a very palpable discomfort. "Something" is bothering you, and more ethanol will calm things down

This is how the GABA-ethanol-glutamate cycle is formed and how it repeats itself until we are drained of energy. On the other hand, MEAI has been shown to be an agonist of a receptor called 5-HT1a, which is highly present in pathways that control satiation behavior - this breaks the GABA-ethanol-glutamate cycle and creates a feeling of satiety (see the accompanying images to this post)

Why am I telling you all this? because one of the most common criticisms I encounter is that the psychoactive substances I have developed are harmful and have no medical value or potential. MEAI is not the first or only substance that I have developed that has demonstrated medical benefit. That said, it is a sparkling example of a beneficial NPS***. Since at the time of writing this Clearmind Medicine (Nasdaq: CMND) is poised to start clinical trials of this substance in order to approve a medicine that can treat alcoholism, I think that the timing is right to pause and consider when changes of perception can be practically and medically beneficial...

*I take care not to use the word ‘designed’ as many articles in the popular press often do. One should note that chemistry is one of the exact sciences, and, that a molecule (in its drawing or full IUPAC name) is a notation for a specific configuration of atoms. When we are said to design a molecule what is actually happening is we are jotting down a molecular structure. For me, in my capacity as a chemoinformatician - what happens next is that I ascertain this NCE’s novelty and it's legality (I do this by running a very thorough literature search and make sure that the molecule does not appear in any newspaper, peer-reviewed paper, book, patent or statute)

**Note the difference between ‘significant’ and ‘statistically significant’ (the latter being mathematically defendable)

***NPS New Psychoactive Substance. This differs from an NCE (New Chemical Entity). An NCE, upon conceptualization is not known to be psychoactive or physiologically active or, in fact, any activity it would or would not have is not known.