NOT GOD –
July 26, 2023 – Importantly, the drug was able to reduce oxycodone intake and relapse without disrupting other reward responses in the brain, which could result in negative side effects.
The team published their findings on July 20, 2023, in the journal Neuropharmacology.
OUD is estimated to impact more than two million people in the U.S. alone, and more than 70,000 people die of opioid overdoses each year. Semi-synthetic opioids, such as oxycodone, are responsible for almost 20 percent of these deaths.
Current OUD treatments, such as methadone, buprenorphine and naltrexone are effective in the short-term, but many patients relapse, and better treatment options are urgently needed.
“Our research demonstrates that targeting the glutamate system with novel pharmacotherapies can stop oxycodone self-administration and seeking in preclinical models, which supports this approach as a future potential treatment for prescription opioid use disorder,” says study senior author Rémi Martin-Fardon, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Molecular Medicine at Scripps Research.
The therapeutic tested, ADX106772, is produced by Addex Therapeutics and works by activating the mGlu2 receptor. These receptors inhibit the release of glutamate and are expressed in brain regions associated with addiction.
