Healing Neurodegenerative Disease & Brain Injury
Five Discovery
Harnessing neuroplastogen biology to develop a new class of non-hallucinogenic small molecules that repair the root circuit dysfunction driving brain degeneration and injury
Pioneering a small-molecule approach to
Regenerative Neurology
We are developing non-hallucinogenic neuroplastogen therapeutics inspired by the mechanisms of 5-MeO-DMT to restore and stabilize dysfunctional neural circuits underlying neurodegeneration and brain injury.
Our approach is positioned within the emerging field of Regenerative Neurology, where we are pioneering a small-molecule strategy focused on durable brain circuit repair rather than symptom management.
Neurodegenerative conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and traumatic brain injury are all driven by a core set of biological features: brain circuit dysfunction, maladaptive neuroplasticity, and neuroinflammation.
By addressing this shared biology, our small-molecule regenerative approach is designed to deliver durable therapeutic benefit across these conditions and beyond.
The shared biology of
Neurodegenerative Disease
Repairing Brain Circuits For Lasting Change
Our Approach
Grounded in validated rapid-acting serotonergic mechanisms, our small-molecule neuroplastogens are designed to restore and stabilize dysfunctional neural circuits.
More specifically, our molecules are engineered to:
Promote durable neural plasticity
Restore dysfunctional brain circuits
Reduce neuroinflammation
Rebalance dysfunctional serotonin–dopamine signaling
Together, these mechanisms enable durable circuit stabilization and form the foundation of our regenerative approach to neurodegeneration and brain injury.
Explore our development roadmap and therapeutic focus areas.
Our Roadmap
Our Team
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Dr. Manesh Girn is a neuroscientist specializing in the neural mechanisms of rapid-acting serotonergic therapeutics. His research has focused on how psychedelic compounds modulate brain network dynamics, functional plasticity, and neurocognitive function – work that directly informs Five Discovery’s regenerative neurology strategy.
Dr. Girn completed his postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco, where he worked with psychedelic research pioneer, Dr. Robin Carhart-Harris, to investigate the systems-level neural mechanisms underlying psychedelic pharmacology and therapeutic response. He has authored over thirty peer-reviewed publications on topics including psychedelics, brain network dynamics, and cognitive function, including in Nature Medicine, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Brain, and Trends in Cognitive Sciences.
In addition to his academic work, Dr. Girn spent four years in executive leadership at Enthotech Bioscience, where he served as Chief Research Officer. In that role, he advised on IP strategy, led clinical trial protocol design, oversaw preparation of regulatory and research documentation, and evaluated technologies and interventions for clinical deployment. Dr. Girn has also served as a scientific consultant to several companies developing psychedelic or psychedelic-inspired therapeutics, advising on mechanism-driven strategy, clinical research design, and narrative positioning.
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Joel Brierre is the co-founder and CEO of FIVE, a training, research, & public education company dedicated to unlocking the full potential of 5-MeO-DMT, the world's most powerful psychedelic.
FIVE is a team of leading psychedelic innovators, building world-class training and advancing groundbreaking research with the industries top university researchers, including the first official EEG study of the 5-MeO peak experience.
Joel is also the founder of the Tandava Institute in Tepoztlán, Mexico, a first of it's kind centre that has facilitated thousands of experiences, collecting Real-World Evidence Data through multi-day retreats to further inform the quality of education, training, best practices and safety protocols in the industry.
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Cory Firth is a human-impact communication strategist and regulatory advocate with almost a decade of experience advancing brain health, mental well-being and psychedelic innovation. After exiting his global communications agency, Cory dedicated his career to transforming mental health and drug policy, holding leadership & advisory positions across Canada, the U.S. the U.K. and Australia.
As the founding Executive Director of the Psychedelic Association of Canada and co-founder of the PsyCan trade association, Cory has helped shape international advocacy frameworks and co-authored a memorandum of regulatory approval that expanded medical access to psilocybin and MDMA in Canada.Today, he channels his expertise in communications, policy & performance science to drive projects that redefine the future of brain heath, consciousness, human intelligence & longevity.
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Philip Young is a proven CEO and Chairman with extensive experience leading public and private companies as an executive and a board member. A strategic leader in fundraising and corporate governance, he drives growth and innovation across industries. With over 30 years of expertise in biotech, he has guided drug research and development programs from discovery through clinical trials to successful commercialization for several companies. His leadership has delivered innovative therapies to market, advancing patient outcomes and shareholder value.
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Dr. Lindsay Cameron is a pioneer in non-hallucinogenic neuroplastogen research and a leading authority on the cellular and circuit-level mechanisms of psychedelic-inspired therapeutics. Her groundbreaking study published in Nature established the scientific foundation for the field of non-hallucinogenic neuroplastogens, demonstrating that key neuroplastic effects of psychedelic compounds can be retained while dissociating hallucinogenic activity.
Her work has directly informed the development strategies of multiple companies advancing rapid-acting serotonergic therapeutics. Dr. Cameron’s research spans receptor pharmacology, synaptic plasticity, circuit dynamics, and rational compound design, positioning her at the forefront of next-generation neuroplastic drug development.
She completed her Ph.D. in the Olson Lab at UC Davis and is currently a Postdoctoral Scholar in the Malenka and Deisseroth laboratories at Stanford University, where she continues to investigate the mechanistic basis of psychedelic-inspired therapeutics.
At Five Discovery, Dr. Cameron leads molecular design and neuropharmacological strategy across the company’s neuroplastogen portfolio.
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Pavol Tuna is a medicinal research chemist specializing in the design, synthesis, and optimization of tryptamine-based and related CNS-active small molecules. His work focuses on structure–activity relationships, scaffold modification, and rational compound development to enhance therapeutic efficacy while improving pharmacokinetic and safety profiles.
Pavol has deep expertise in the chemistry of serotonergic compounds, including 5-MeO-DMT and ibogaine-derived analogs. His experience spans synthetic strategy, analog library development, and translational collaboration with neuropharmacology teams to advance candidate selection.
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Josh Allen is a neuroscientist specializing in preclinical translational research at the intersection of neurodegeneration, brain injury, and serotonergic therapeutics. His work focuses on how psychedelics and related compounds modulate neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, neurotransmission, and neuroplasticity – core mechanisms underlying traumatic brain injury and neurodegenerative disease.
Dr. Allen has advanced our mechanistic understanding of how serotonergic and sigma-1 receptor engagement may promote neuroprotection, neuronal survival, and functional recovery following acquired brain injury. His research integrates receptor pharmacology, neurotrophic signaling pathways, and in vivo outcome measures relevant to both acute and chronic phases of neurological injury.
The Five Discovery team brings experience from leading research institutions and biotechnology organizations, including:
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