, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Medicinal Chemistry at the VCU School of Pharmacy, is among the researchers whose work on a redesigned psychedelic compound was recently featured by Chemistry World, the news publication of the Royal Society of Chemistry.

The study, published in Science Signaling, examines VCU-1012, a compound designed to retain potentially therapeutic effects associated with psychedelics while reducing unwanted gastrointestinal side effects. In preclinical testing, the compound promoted neural plasticity and produced antidepressant- and anxiety-reducing effects in mice without disrupting gastrointestinal function. Read the Chemistry World coverage.