A new resource for experts and entrepreneurs at the University of Saskatchewan is becoming an integral part in helping them build their own businesses.  The project is called Opus, and it is designed to provide access to programming, infrastructure and mentors to those who wish to start a company.

Dr. Robert Laprairie, a researcher at USask, is using Opus’s resources to begin a natural health product company called Spore Culture Inc.  Laprairie says his end goal for the company is to develop psilocybin-based treatments for anxiety and depression that are an alternative to conventional antidepressants.

Like any drug development process, Laprairie says the project will be many years in the making to ensure the treatments are safe.  He says clinical trials out of the United States and Canada are showing promising results when it comes using mushroom derivatives. The treatments are showing symptom relief within as little as a few days, whereas most antidepressants take 2-3 months to take effect.

The doctor and entrepreneur says when he was first deciding to start a business, he was unsure of what was available to him to assist with resources and funding.  He adds that Opus has played a huge role in educating him on what it takes to create a company, as well as providing him with all the necessary tools.