BRD-100
5-HT2A neuroplastogens
Rapid onset, marked antidepressant efficacy, durable response
Initial focus Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)
- Lead optimisation
- IND-enabling
- Phase I
- Phase IIa
Brandaris Therapeutics
Revolutionising the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders.
Addressing the huge unmet medical need in mental health.
About Brandaris
Unmet medical need
Mental health conditions are a growing and urgent challenge. More than 300 million people worldwide live with depression, and many are not helped by current treatments.
Psychedelic treatments
Psychedelic therapies have shown powerful, long-lasting benefits for depression by driving neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to form new connections, through the brain’s serotonin system. But these therapies also cause intense effects during dosing, so patients must be monitored in a clinic. That makes these treatments hard to deliver at scale.
Brandaris’ approach
Brandaris’ first program aims to maintain the benefits of psychedelic medicines but remove the clinic requirement, so that patients can receive treatment at home, without supervised sessions. Brandaris have designed molecules with precise activation profiles to help address broader needs in mental health. Our team combines expertise in AI-driven drug discovery, pharmacology, neuroscience, clinical development and biotech investment.
Brandaris has built a portfolio of new, non-hallucinogenic compounds that display antidepressant effects. Brandaris’ lead candidate, BRD-101, selectively targets the 5-HT2A receptor and is expected to enter clinical trials in mid-2027.
Science
The serotonergic system: a powerful therapeutic opportunity.
5-HT2A neuroplastogens
Serotonin regulates mood, cognition, perception, motivation, learning and neuroplasticity, and its dysregulation is implicated in depression, schizophrenia, substance use disorders and anxiety-related conditions. By precisely tailoring 5-HT2A receptor activation, Brandaris has developed novel drugs designed to produce neuroplastic and therapeutic effects without psychedelic-like properties.
Bespoke AI-enabled drug design
Built alongside expert discovery partners, Brandaris’ AI platform, LUGAN.AI, draws on the extensive publication and patent literature on the 5-HT2 family of serotonergic receptors. Combined with state-of-the-art molecular dynamics, LUGAN.AI predicts the receptor activation potential of novel serotonergic ligands. These predictions are validated and refined through testing of Brandaris’ proprietary compound portfolio, creating a continuous cycle of learning that drives the discovery engine.
Precise serotonergic system activation
Brandaris have identified multiple novel chemotypes with advantageous properties, including:
- Serotonergic receptor selectivity (individual or multiple target activation)
- Ligand bias (specific downstream pathway activation)
- Range of potencies and intrinsic efficacies (strength of activation)
Pipeline
BRD-200
Precision polypharmacology
Modulating multiple serotonergic pathways through carefully engineered receptor pharmacology.
Initial focus Schizophrenia and substance use disorders
- Lead optimisation
- IND-enabling
- Phase I
- Phase IIa
Team and leadership
Deep expertise of drug development, biotech investment and company building.
Through decades of pharma and biotech experience, Brandaris’ leadership team has a proven track record of advancing innovative therapeutics from discovery through clinical development, building high-performing organisations, and translating breakthrough science into value-creating medicines. Together, Brandaris is committed to transforming outcomes for patients living with neuropsychiatric disorders.
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Wouter Verhoeven
CEO
Wouter is an accomplished biotech leader with more than two decades experience spanning venture-backed and publicly listed life science companies.
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Wouter has biotechnology businesses spanning drug discovery, business development and corporate growth, helping translate innovative science into successful companies and strategic partnerships. Wouter has served in management and business development roles across a number of biotech companies including Dualyx, NBE Therapeutics, Mabxience, Crucell and Berna Biotech.
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Carol Routledge, PhD
CMSO
Carol has more than 35 years of experience in neuroscience drug development within major pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology companies, venture capital, and non-profit organisations.
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Carol’s expertise spans both preclinical and clinical pharmacology, translational medicine, regulatory strategy and portfolio development. Carol served as CMSO at Small Pharma, where she advanced psychedelic-based treatments for mental health disorders through Phase IIa clinical development, culminating in Smalll Pharma's acquisition by Helus (formerly Cybin). Carol has also held leadership positions at Alzheimer’s Research UK, Syntex, Wyeth, BTG and GSK.
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John Montana, PhD, MRSA
Founder, CDO
John is a highly accomplished medicinal chemist and drug discovery leader with decades of experience discovering innovative therapeutics for neurological and psychiatric disorders.
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Fred Westhorpe, PhD
Head of Preclinical Research
Fred has extensive experience advancing small-molecule therapeutics from target validation through candidate selection and clinical readiness.
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Fred has held CNS drug discovery leadership roles across biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, including Merck, CuraSen Therapeutics, Compass Pathways and Biomia. An expert in receptor pharmacology, Fred's expertise spans target and translational pharmacology, preclinical drug development and portfolio management to support clinical entry of novel drugs.
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Domhnall Kelly, PhD
Operations management
Domhnall is an experienced life sciences operations leader with expertise in programme management, research operations and investor relations.
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Domhnall has supported multidisciplinary teams across venture capital and biotech. Domhnall oversees operational delivery of Brandaris research programmes. Prior to Brandaris, Domhnall has worked within the investment teams at a number of early-stage life science VC funds including Thuja Capital, BioGeneration Ventures, and Bioqube Ventures.
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Steven van’t Hart
Head of Finance
Steven has significant experience supporting multiple early to late-stage drug discovery biotech companies in finance and operational roles.
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With 15 years of experience in Finance & Accounting, Steven brings extensive expertise supporting early- to late-stage drug discovery biotech across financial and operational roles. Steven’s experience includes implementing financial and operational governance frameworks, managing significant international industry grants, and building robust financial foundations to support growth.
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Keno Gutierrez, PhD
Founder, Chairman
As a General Partner of BioGeneration Ventures (BGV), Keno is an entrepreneur and innovator with extensive experience founding and investing in biotech.
Backed by experienced investors
Supporting breakthrough science to become impactful medicines
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