We are a joint laboratory of the Department of Chemistry of Natural Compounds and of the Department of Organic Chemistry.
Our aim is analysis and synthesis of various biologically active substances.
Prof. Zurina Hassan's visitAt the end of April, we had the pleasure of welcoming Prof. Zurina Hassan from Universiti Sains Malaysia. Prof. Hassan specializes in behavioral research in animals, neuroplasticity, and the effects of neuroactive substances on the brain. Among the compounds she studies is kratom, a topic on which she has published more than 30 scientific articles. During her visit, she delivered a highly inspiring lecture specifically focused on kratom. Her schedule was very full — including media interviews, a meeting with the university rector Prof. Pospíšil, the signing of a memorandum of understanding for joint research, and several other activities.
We are grateful for her visit and look forward to further collaboration in the fields of neuroscience and research on natural psychoactive compounds!
More in the press release: https://www.vscht.cz/press/press-release/memorandum-malaysia-kratom?jazyk=en&lang=en
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Invitation to a lecture about Impact of Kratom 29.4.2025
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You can find more about her working group HERE. |
We invite you to a lecture Evaluation of the impact of kratom Prof. Dr. Zurina Hassan April 29 at 4:00 PM in the building B, BII auditorium Zurina Hassan Centre for Drug Research, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) and its primary alkaloid, mitragynine, have gained global attention as plant-derived psychoactive substances with stimulant and opioid-like properties. Traditionally used in Southeast Asia for medicinal purposes and as a stimulant among manual laborers, kratom has more recently emerged in Western contexts as a recreational "herbal high" and alternative to opioids. Despite its long-standing cultural use, concerns about its potential for misuse, particularly among adolescents seeking euphoric effects, have intensified. This presentation explores the evolving perception of kratom use, from a benign traditional remedy to a substance warranting regulatory scrutiny. Drawing from both human and animal research conducted by the Centre for Drug Research, this talk highlights recent findings on kratom’s abuse liability and its cognitive impacts. While local communities may still view kratom as harmless, emerging scientific evidence underscores its capacity to impair cognitive function and contribute to dependence, raising important questions for public health, regulation, and future research. |
SVK 2024 - successes of our students
| Student Scientific Conference 2024, University of Technology Prague | |
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In this year's Student Science Conference, our students competed across the fields of natural product chemistry, organic chemistry, biotechnology, and analytical chemistry. We are glad, they were successful everywhere! We registered a record number of winners. Congratulations to all the awardees and all the participants! |
| The photo shows students receiving awards from Professor Oldřich Lapčík as part of the competition of the Institute of Chemistry of Natural Substances, analytical section. |
Do you have a respect to kratom?
You can listen to the entire interview on the topic of kratom with Martin Kuchař in the DVTV.
Interview starts at 37th minute.
Martin Kuchař also answered other questions during the interview.
Our achievements at the GA Congress in Dublin
We presented our research at the 71st International Congress and Annual Meeting of the Society for Medicinal Plant and Natural Product Research (GA Congress) held in July. This extraordinary meeting brought together scientific leaders in the field of natural products, including experts and enthusiasts from various backgrounds, with a special focus on the theme of 'Unlocking Nature's Pharmacy for a Sustainable Future'.
Ing. Hanka Walaská received the award for the best poster presentation with the topic "Isolation and characterisation of several kratom alkaloids for subsequent HPLC-MS analysis of commercial product".
We congratulate not only to Ing. Hanka Walaská for a great presentation!
More information from the conference HERE.
Security project
In 2023 we received a new four-year safety research project entitled New psychoactive substances: forensic-toxicology research center (NPS-FORTOX). This project follows on from the long-term work of BAFA, where we deal not only with forensic identification of psychoactive substances.
You can read more in the UCT Prague news.
TIAFT 2023
We participated in another conference from TIAFT edition. This time, event took a place in Rome, Italy.
The conference offered 4 days of scientific program packed with professional lectures, courses and presentation of poster messages.
We pretented 9 posters in total.
Bronislav Jurásek received an award from the French Embassy for his work
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Laureates of the scientific awards of the Embassy of France in the Czech Republic for the year 2022 |
On June 23, 2022, the award ceremony of the French Embassy took place. Prizes were awarded annually to talented young scientists in seven categories. Bronislav Jurásek took 3rd place in the Sanofi Prize 2022 (the pharmacy category) with his work: Analogs and Metabolites of New Psychoactive Substances.. Congratulations! |
SVK 2022We congratulate all students on their success at the student scientific conference (SVK 2022).
TIAFT 20225.-9. September 2022, the 59th meeting of the International Association of Forensic Toxicologists took place in Versailles
We successfully presented our research at this long-awaited TIAFT conference in Versailles, France!
Our researchers presented new analytical approaches, syntheses, as well as clinical and forensic toxicology cases.
You can find more about the conference itself HERE.
Psychedelics have enormous potential
HERE, you can find answers to these questions made by associate professor Martin Kuchař.
How hard is it to do clinical research on psychedelics? Did cannabis research bring anything new? What other psychedelics are coming in the future?
Expedition Neuron 2016 wild cardDepression treatment with antidepressants is successfull only in part of patients. Therefore, there is a need to find different ways of treatment. Very strong antidepressant effect has been discovered in relation to some psychedelics. The goal of the expedition lead by Dr. Tomáš Páleníček is to answer the question, if there is an antidepressant potential of ritual use of psychedelic ayahuasca from both clinical and neurobiological point of view and if these findingds can be successfully aplied in depression treatment.
You can watch a video about the expedition HERE.
Group for medical use of psychoactive substances and plantsIng. Martin Kuchař Ph.D. was appointed a member of expert group working on medical potential of psychoactive substances and plants as a part of Government Council for Drug Policy Coordination.
Our research mentioned in the mediaAre hormonal levels of ice-hockey players related to their performance and situations during the play? You may find the answer in sports chapter of periodic Blesk. Full article (in czech) is available HERE.
TIAFT 2015Several posters regarding our research were presented at the 53rd TIAFT meeting 2015 in Firenze.